Some sad news...

It’s always hard saying goodbye to children when they are discharged from Thembelihle. When I look back to the beginning of December when a large number of children left, I realise how far I have come and how many children I have worked with over the last 9 months. So many faces have come and gone and the Thembelihle family continues to change. I remember all of their smiling faces and all of the little quirky things each of them did that made them individual and special. It’s always strange and I often wonder how the children get on when they leave. In March one girl returned on a week visit during her school holidays. It was great to see how her English has improved and how her dreams and goals are keeping her strong and motivated and how grown up she now is…she gave us a helping hand at the home and was much more mature than she was before Christmas!!! I had a catch up with her and found out that she was doing really well at school and was really enjoying it, despite the 3 hour walk there and 3 hour walk back each day! Sometimes though, I guess it is just inevitable that things don’t always go right. Thembelihle was saddened this week with the news of the death of one of our children who was discharged back in December. A horrific death that no one would ever deserve and a story which highlights many of the dangers across South Africa…

Please keep your thoughts and prayers with her family.