Hello Everybody
It is that time of the year – silly season! Schools break up for a very long and much needed holiday,
families plan visits and trips, and we rush around getting last-minute things together for the festive season.
I hope you’ll all have a wonderful, restful time.
I will not be doing a newsletter in December this year, as I will be taking some time off. The past year has
been a huge challenge for us all, and this will be a time for me to spend with my family and children.
Definitely a much-needed and anticipated break!
Thank you to the following contributors:
Arlene Johansson, Dr Lara Smith, Marlene Helfrecht, Bronwyn Hopwood, Jane and Sebastian Dunn, Tara and Dave Dunn, Sandy Schuurman, Sharon Wewege, Heather Mylne, Rene Grimmbacher, Sam and Liam Grimmbacher, Michael P., Donna Cobban and Luc Michot, Anna Johansson, Kaye Longman, Yolanda and Allan Parry, Collyeen Sinclair, Bessie and Athina Kotsiopolous, Dimitra Kotsiopolous, Willem and Denise van Bergen, Annette Milner, Elaine Aquadro, Pam Cable, friends at New Beginnings Clinic and friends at Monterey Pre-Primary School, Georgie and anonymous friends from Constantiaberg Pre-Primary School.
Babies Born during November:
There were 177 babies born during November – 97 were boys and the rest girls. Twelve babies were born to young women 17 or younger.
A Reflection on the year behind us:
As far as the counseling goes, Tracey has seen 115 clients and has facilitated 7 adoptions. It has been interesting that the severity of problems experienced by clients have increased due to the rise in tik abuse. Clients are much more inclined to be dishonest, with worse anger problems, resulting in much more time-consuming counseling. The new Act has clamped down on ladies re-entering the same safe houses time and time again, making it difficult to find immediate relief from their situations. But with all this, we have had outstanding results through the year.
We have assisted in removing approximately 10 women and their children to safe houses where domestic violence have been taking place, ensuring better prospects for the mom through the training and counseling provided at the safe houses as well as ensuring the children enter crèches or schools in the areas of the safe houses.
We held a Dullah [birthing partner] course on 18th September, to which 15 people attended. It was an amazing day and left a lot of the women wide-eyed and excited. We have two new Dullahs who have joined our team, Yolanda and Grishelle. They are an absolute blessing to the moms and staff at Retreat MOU. We continue to receive enquiries as to assisting at the clinic in this regard.
The six-a-side Zoe soccer tournament was held on Saturday, 27th November, which was a success. It was amazing to see how sport can be used as a tool to bring people together and to make people aware of the Zoe Project.
240 mom packs and 240 baby packs have been supplied to the Retreat MOU this year. Ten amazing Christmas packs have already been made up and are ready for those precious Christmas babies. All this thanks to your generosity throughout the year.
We have also been promised more baby and moms packs from a corporate sponsor and we cannot wait to distribute theses to our moms on Christmas day.
We now supply 100 portions of homemade soups per month. That’s a whopping 1200 meals per year, absolutely amazing! As well as 32 loaves of bread a month and 8 margarines per month. This is produced consistently throughout the year.
Our dry goods pantry supplies meals for approximately 75 people a month – another 900 meals per year! Incredible to think how far soup and pasta as well as tinned food can go.
There was also a large donation of portable blood-pressure machines, surgical gloves, catheters, etc which has been invaluable to the staff and patients.
Regina Dyonasie, from Masiphumelele, has joined the Zoe Project, handing out food and baby parcels where needed. It has been encouraging to see her enthusiasm in taking responsibility for these donations to her community.
Thank you so much to each of you who have helped us help others. I trust you will all have a blessed December and January. Take this time to enjoy special moments with family and friends.
Lots of love as always,
Norah Papanicolaou
It is that time of the year – silly season! Schools break up for a very long and much needed holiday,
families plan visits and trips, and we rush around getting last-minute things together for the festive season.
I hope you’ll all have a wonderful, restful time.
I will not be doing a newsletter in December this year, as I will be taking some time off. The past year has
been a huge challenge for us all, and this will be a time for me to spend with my family and children.
Definitely a much-needed and anticipated break!
Thank you to the following contributors:
Arlene Johansson, Dr Lara Smith, Marlene Helfrecht, Bronwyn Hopwood, Jane and Sebastian Dunn, Tara and Dave Dunn, Sandy Schuurman, Sharon Wewege, Heather Mylne, Rene Grimmbacher, Sam and Liam Grimmbacher, Michael P., Donna Cobban and Luc Michot, Anna Johansson, Kaye Longman, Yolanda and Allan Parry, Collyeen Sinclair, Bessie and Athina Kotsiopolous, Dimitra Kotsiopolous, Willem and Denise van Bergen, Annette Milner, Elaine Aquadro, Pam Cable, friends at New Beginnings Clinic and friends at Monterey Pre-Primary School, Georgie and anonymous friends from Constantiaberg Pre-Primary School.
Babies Born during November:
There were 177 babies born during November – 97 were boys and the rest girls. Twelve babies were born to young women 17 or younger.
A Reflection on the year behind us:
As far as the counseling goes, Tracey has seen 115 clients and has facilitated 7 adoptions. It has been interesting that the severity of problems experienced by clients have increased due to the rise in tik abuse. Clients are much more inclined to be dishonest, with worse anger problems, resulting in much more time-consuming counseling. The new Act has clamped down on ladies re-entering the same safe houses time and time again, making it difficult to find immediate relief from their situations. But with all this, we have had outstanding results through the year.
We have assisted in removing approximately 10 women and their children to safe houses where domestic violence have been taking place, ensuring better prospects for the mom through the training and counseling provided at the safe houses as well as ensuring the children enter crèches or schools in the areas of the safe houses.
We held a Dullah [birthing partner] course on 18th September, to which 15 people attended. It was an amazing day and left a lot of the women wide-eyed and excited. We have two new Dullahs who have joined our team, Yolanda and Grishelle. They are an absolute blessing to the moms and staff at Retreat MOU. We continue to receive enquiries as to assisting at the clinic in this regard.
The six-a-side Zoe soccer tournament was held on Saturday, 27th November, which was a success. It was amazing to see how sport can be used as a tool to bring people together and to make people aware of the Zoe Project.
240 mom packs and 240 baby packs have been supplied to the Retreat MOU this year. Ten amazing Christmas packs have already been made up and are ready for those precious Christmas babies. All this thanks to your generosity throughout the year.
We have also been promised more baby and moms packs from a corporate sponsor and we cannot wait to distribute theses to our moms on Christmas day.
We now supply 100 portions of homemade soups per month. That’s a whopping 1200 meals per year, absolutely amazing! As well as 32 loaves of bread a month and 8 margarines per month. This is produced consistently throughout the year.
Our dry goods pantry supplies meals for approximately 75 people a month – another 900 meals per year! Incredible to think how far soup and pasta as well as tinned food can go.
There was also a large donation of portable blood-pressure machines, surgical gloves, catheters, etc which has been invaluable to the staff and patients.
Regina Dyonasie, from Masiphumelele, has joined the Zoe Project, handing out food and baby parcels where needed. It has been encouraging to see her enthusiasm in taking responsibility for these donations to her community.
Thank you so much to each of you who have helped us help others. I trust you will all have a blessed December and January. Take this time to enjoy special moments with family and friends.
Lots of love as always,
Norah Papanicolaou
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