It was a proud moment for Langa when Ikhaya Lekamva Children’s Home was officially opened on Friday, September 20.
Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis, Mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith, and other guests attended the event.
Jorg Caluori, the founder of NGO Township Help, said he was visiting the area when he discovered that there were children living in a child-headed homes. He said he saw many children growing up in shacks riddled with holes.
He said he knew immediately that he needed to do something to make their lives better.
He decide to build a children’s home and started seeking funds and support from Switzerland, Austria, Germany, the USA, as well as the World Bank and some South African families.
He said through these donations they were able to buy the house in December and at the beginning of this year started remodelling it to be used as the new children’s home.
He said met some amazing women from the area who were running a soup kitchen and they brought them into their project.
“We have five helpers here to take care of the children, cook, clean and wash. The home provides shelter for 22 children with the youngest of aged eight months while the oldest is about 15 years old.
“We have also ensured that all these children have God parents who take care of their financial needs from overseas and here in the country.
“The children we take in and care for are partly orphans who no longer have parents.
“Most of them, however, have mothers who are suffering themselves and have no work and little to no support.
“Addiction problems are also big problem but the state does provide citizens here with child support for each child which is currently R500 a month.
“But most parents keep that money for themselves even though that is illegal and that is how they satisfy their addiction and children are left to fend for themselves,” said Mr Caluori.
Mr Hill-Lewis said he met Mr Caluori about two years ago when he told him about his dream of opening up a children’s home in Langa.
He praised Mr Caluori for being determined to see the project succeed and said he remembers the angry emails he got from Mr Caluori as he inquired about approval of the building.
He said he knows Mr Caluori has put much of his own money into the project and it is good to see it completed.
Ward councillor Lwazi Phakade said he is happy to see to home opened as he knows how much had to be overcome for it to reach this stage.
