From an early age, children in Cloetesville, South Africa are forced to struggle with poverty, violence, and abandonment. Currently, over a third of Cloetesville’s residents are unemployed and have resorted to living in over-crowded informal housing. These living conditions have spurred the widespread occurrence of substance abuse, domestic violence, and HIV among Cloetesville’s families. As a result, children from Cloetesville are often exposed to abuse and neglect.

Women Helping Women, a philanthropy group in Washington DC, has committed to change the lives of these children by pledging to raise $2,600 and provide six Cloetesville children with an alternative – a loving home where they can receive the care they need to thrive. Women Helping Women will be working directly with the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project and Home for Home to build a foster home, demonstrating the power of women to work together and take action to better the lives of families in need.

All donations raised through their fundraising efforts will support the purchase, set-up and operations of a three-bedroom foster home in Cloetesville. In addition, the funds raised will fully support the foster home’s operations for two years including school fees, uniforms, and supplies for the children!

By helping to create a stable, family-like environment, Women Helping Women will ensure six South African children receive the love and care they need to grow and become successful adults.

Cloetesville is a small South African community of approximately 18,000 residents located just outside of Cape Town. In the past, many of Cloetesville’s families supported themselves by working in the vineyards of a more prosperous neighboring community. However, in recent years,unemployment has become a serious challenge for Cloetesville’s residents, leaving many vulnerable to extreme poverty.

These issues have been compounded by the significant income disparities that exist within the community. While lower-middle class residents are able to maintain comfortable homes, many others live in desperate conditions; over a third of Cloetesville’s families live in informal housing without access to basic amenities. The poverty evidenced by these living conditions has led to a dramatic upsurge in substance abuse and domestic violence in Cloetesville. Tragically, the HIV pandemic has worsened this situation and left many children without parents or neglected. As a result, a growing number of Cloetesville’s children are being sent to be raised in large institutions far from their homes and community.

Community member details not available yet.

Direct Impact of Your Project

• Ensures 6 at-risk children can grow and thrive in a loving, safe home
• Allows the 6 children to receive the therapeutic intervention they need to overcome their early trauma
• Provides the 6 children with the resources and support they need to attend school and receive a proper education
• Trains and employs 2 previously jobless adults to serve as the home’s foster mother and part-time assistant

Extended Impact on Your Partner Community

• Family members of the 6 children living in the home will receive supportive social services such as counseling
• Provides 10 local laborers with employment during the foster home’s renovations
• Empowers 30 community and church members to give back to those less fortunate by supporting the home in various ways including assisting with childcare duties, household chores such as gardening and repairs, transportation services and financial management
• Community members will gain better understanding of the social problems in their communities through community forums on issues such as health and crime.
• The social stigma against families and children affected by HIV will be reduced within the community in part because community members will be able to see the children thrive when receiving the proper antiretroviral medication.
• Community members will benefit from the positive example set by the foster mother.