Monthly Update: February

Volunteers working hard on the new Ezwenelisha Support
Group garden.

The warm weather of February is here, and with its arrival came 13 new volunteers to join the ranks of African Impact volunteers. With many more volunteers than projected, we were able to begin two exciting new projects and visit more crèches than ever before, among other accomplishments.

Read on to find out how each project developed over the course of the month.

Home Based Care

February was the first month that our volunteers and Nokwethemba used the new Home Based Care plan, which has helped us to keep better track of the patients. The medical volunteers were able to visit Gogo Breast Cancer and check on her wound – we were saddened to learn that during the holiday season her daughter died suddenly. However, we were able to look at her wound, clean, cover it with a new bandage and leave her with new bandages. We also visited Phendukile’s sister who has a very large wound on her neck as a result of an abscess. The medical volunteers tried their best to clean the wound and dress it. Marjolein, a medical volunteer and trained nurse took some photos of the wound to send to her colleagues in the Netherlands for a consultation. Despite some tough visits to very sick patients, our medical team of four has made great strides with our record system so that future volunteers can understand who needs to be seen and how they can be cared for in the coming months.

Afterschool Club

The month of February at Afterschool Club has been filled with music, laughter, sport, and art. At Ezwenelisha Afterschool Club we have begun teaching computer lessons once more. The children have enjoyed the lessons and have gotten more proficient and comfortable with the computers and typing. We have many new members in the club who have started to get to know each other better this month, a concern we had during the month of January.

At Khula Afterschool Club the children have gotten into a routine of attending the club and we have seen the numbers increase every week. The children at both Afterschool Clubs have enjoyed coloring pages, free drawing, paper airplanes, and origami fortunetellers. Due to the heat the children have been reluctant to play outside but have enjoyed dancing to music and playing limbo. The children at Khula had a blast drawing on the blacktop with sidewalk chalk while others enjoyed playing one-touch football. Community volunteer Carmen had a blast in the last week of February teaching aerobics to some of the Gogos who had gathered at Senzokuhle – a great sight for everyone playing with the kids! 

Creche

For the month of February we were able to work at 3 crèches simultaneously, thanks to our growing number of volunteers. We continued to work at Impumelelo Crèche were the children have a wonderful grasp of colors and shapes. 
At Malibongwe Crèche we have continued to focus on working with the older children even though the majority of children at the crèche are infants. However, even the tiniest of crèche-goers have begun to sing along with the songs and Alphabet.  We have also started working at Dukuduku Creche. We have been working there for only a few weeks but our presence can been seen with the how many of the children are able to recognize different colors, shapes, and letters. The children are beginning to identify different letters and numbers, thus grasping the concept of the Alphabet and not just memorizing the song.

HIV Education

Throughout the month of February the volunteers have been able to run several HIV education courses in Khula and Ezwenelisha.  The volunteers along with Shwele also held two courses for the women of the fruit market in St. Lucia at Reef and Dune.

We also resumed the primary HIV class at Ubuhlebembelo, with one class sitting the test in mid-February and the other set to write the test on March 1^st.  The first class of 2012 was a great success and all 14 students passed. We have begun going to HIV Education five days a week, which means the students get more time with the teachers, although their school break has been shortened. This gives the volunteers a chance to review the test with the learners so they can better understand the questions they got wrong.    

Medical volunteer Sarah working
at OneSight's eye clinic in Khula.

Support Group

February has been an exciting month for both support groups. One topic that has been very important and discussed at both groups has been discrimination. Suggested by medical volunteer Kate, the topic sparked great discussion in both Khula and Ezwenelisha and will be revisited again due to its therapeutic nature. Both support groups also took part in an eyeglass clinic that was being run by NGOs One Sight and Mphilonhle. All the members had their eyes checked and even if they did not need glasses they were given sunglasses. The volunteers also had a great time helping with eye exams and ensuring every patient in need saw the ophthalmologist.

At Khula Support Group one week the topic that was discussed was at home exercises for the feet. It was a topic that everyone enjoyed and would keep on utilizing at home. At Ezwenelisha Support Group the members enjoyed learning about topics for positive living in 2012. The members shared their hopes for 2012 and then discussed how they could achieve these goals. The volunteers also found numerous exercises for Sizakhele, who suffered a stroke some years ago, and the members have enjoyed trying the exercises out with David, our yoga instructor.

At the end of the month we were finally given permission and a plot of land to start the support group garden. The members are overjoyed and we have already begun to till the land and everyone is excited to plant the first seeds. The support group will share the garden’s crops, even though some members are physically unable to tend to the plants, and together the group will decide when and what to plant. We’re very excited to see how the garden progresses over the coming months.

AMREF Garden

Community volunteer Melissa organizing
some of the container's baby books.

After clearing the plot of land last month we were able to begin planting.  We have planted beans and potatoes. The beans have already to begun to sprout and with our new hose pipe watering the garden has gotten much easier. We are looking forward to planting carrots, spinach, cabbage and onion in March, as it will then be the proper season for these crops. 

Container

We have made great progress on the container this month, as it undergoes its transformation from shipping container to full-blown library. Many afternoons were spent sorting the books into appropriate reading and age levels and then placing color-coded stickers on them to aid in organizing. 
It is amazing to see the progress that is being made every afternoon. With the help of community volunteer and former librarian Liz, the container has come a long way this month and we’re eager to continue organizing in the month of March. ]

Nutrition Programme

The Nutrition program with ePAP (a pre cooked porridge blend of maize & soya, high in vitamins & minerals, which just needs to be mixed with water), was started at the beginning of February with some families in Khula & Ezwenelsiha.

Compliance has not always been 100%, as it is taking a while for participants to understand when is the best time to take it alongside normal meals and their medications, without any adverse effects.  The positive effects, however, can be seen with some of the participants who have noticed an increase in energy levels, enabling them to help out more around the home.

-Written by our Medical Team

Staff Profile: Sofie

Sofie volunteered with African Impact Antelope Park in 2009 after studying a semester at University of Cape Town. A year after finishing her degree in Service Management back at home (Sweden), she decided that she wanted to go back to Africa.


She felt that she wanted to make a difference, working with grass-root level projects. "Many people try and do small things from far away, which is amazing, but I wanted to be where it was actually happening." 


Sofie is now the Business Manager of the St Lucia projects and together with her amazing team tries to lead, empower and educate the people in her surroundings in order to improve their life in many different ways. She hopes that most people can feel the love for their job like she does, a lot thanks to her team members and all the volunteers coming to help.


"I am proud that I grabbed the opportunity to leave my everyday life in Sweden, pack up my belongings and move where I felt better needed."


She loves the vibrant atmosphere and culture surrounding her down here and wish that everyone have the opportunity to experience it at least once in their life. 


"To be able to live in this beautiful part of the world meanwhile helping the people most in need is something that I wake up grateful for every day."

New Project Alert: Sowing seeds in Ezwenelisha

Support Group members Bheki, Gogo Togo and Gogo Joyce
plowing the land for the garden.

This week the volunteers and support group members broke ground at the new Ezwenelisha Support Group Garden. The volunteers and three of the group's members worked hard to get the land cleared so we can begin planting vegetables in the coming weeks.

As this is a garden managed entirely by the members of the support group we facilitate, they have control over when we garden and what we will be planting. The volunteers simply supply some extra labour and seeds to help speed up the process. The group has also decided that although not all the members are able-bodied (like Sizakhele, who has suffered a stroke), the crops harvested will be shared equally.

Some volunteers lending a hand by plowing the ground at
the Lifeline building.

The community organisation Lifeline has been generous enough to donate some land around the Lifeline Building where our support group takes place. This means the garden will be secure behind the locked gate and fence, as many of the members don't have their own vegetable patches for fear their crops will be stolen.

In the coming weeks the support group members have asked that we plant spinach, cabbage, tomato, onion and carrots, with plans to plant much more. We're excited to provide the group the opportunity to make their own produce, whether it be for their own consumption or to sell.

Staff Profile: Xenia

Xenia at creche as a volunteer in June of 2010.

Xenia Rybak, St. Lucia’s current Volunteer Coordinator says it has “always been a dream come true to come and volunteer in South Africa.” After a friend of hers in New York volunteered with African Impact she decided to follow suit, volunteering for our community project in May and June of 2010.

“I had such a great time and such amazing memories,” says Xenia of her time as a volunteer.

Xenia returned to St Lucia in January of 2012 to provide the same great memories for other volunteers. She said her goal is to provide volunteers “a very positive experience, one that they feel like they’ve had an impact on the community however big or small it is. That they know for even a moment they’ve impacted a child’s life.“

In the U.S., Xenia has worked as a teacher, providing childcare and working in hospitals and has a masters degree in child life. Her expertise gives her a solid foundation for coming up with innovative lesson plans for our education programme. She says her favourite part of working with African Impact is just how much she gets to interact with a wide range of people.

“Interacting with the community and even team members, having conversations that are so welcoming where people want to know your name, where you’re from, is the best part,” says Xenia.

Taking a break

The volunteers take a break after setting up all the shelving in
the container - the first step in its transformation into a library!
For more photos check out our February photo album on Facebook.

Visit our Official Website for more details on our projects and how to get involved with African Impact.

New Project Alert: Nutrition Programme

The Nutrition Programme resources used by volunteers.

It has consistently perplexed staff as well as volunteers on both our medical and community projects as to how we can further promote healthy living – particularly when it comes to the nutrition of the people we work with in both Khula and Ezwenelisha. High prevalence of ailments such as HIV/AIDS, TB, high blood pressure and diabetes in the societies in which we work has led us to continuously advocate a healthy diet for all. This is however a difficult thing to promote in a society where people have very little money to spend on adequate nutrition.

An opportunity arose to work with local business Hornbill House, who wished to partner with African Impact in supplying us with the nutritional supplement “EPap.” By forming this partnership, we could both reach out to the community in a way we’ve never done before. This has become the cornerstone to our new Nutritional Programme.

The Zikhale family during their first meeting with African
Impact staff and volunteers. 

As always, we began by speaking to the Induna (leader) of Khula Village, who happily suggested some families that could benefit from the nutrition we could provide. We also reached out to the Lifeline Caregivers in Ezwenelisha, who have provided us with two more families to begin our programme.

Once the four families were chosen, we gave them each a special visit, taking their weights, getting to know their members and situation while evaluating their current health. The four families are all clearly suffering from a lack of basic nutrition, among other health needs that can be remedied by using EPap, which will give them added vitamins and nutrients and give their immune systems a boost. Members of the families suffer from TB, HIV, cancer, broken arms, fungal infections, skin rashes, arthritis, high blood pressure, diabetes and fatigue.

Our aim with this new project is to teach families about proper nutrition and healthy living while providing them with the boost they need to regain their health. As the programme moves further, we hope to start providing people with gardens and consult with them regarding how to manage chronic problem such as diabetes and high blood pressure through a healthy diet.

Please check back on our blog for more updates as this programme develops and grows with the help of our volunteers. 

Monthly Update: January

January has arrived and the New Year has brought three new volunteers to St. Lucia.  The African Impact team was excited to welcome Liz and Cora, who worked on the community projects and Thirsa, a medical volunteer.

Read on to find out just how each project developed over the course of the month.

Two of our Khula Support Group members showing off
their newborn babies to the rest of the group. 

Support Groups

Both support groups were excited to resume after the holiday break. At the Khula Support Group the women learned and discussed about how HIV and TB together can exacerbate the individual diseases. The topic of positive living was also introduced and the women shared what they would like to improve about their lives in 2012. They were also given suggestions on how to make positive decisions regarding their health and diet. As always, their craft sales are going well and they are happily continuing to learn new beading techniques and we’re always excited to see their creations.  

The Ezwenelisha Support Group has started 2012 off with some great meetings – one at yoga instructor David’s house and another in iSimangaliso. Their first meeting was spent relaxing in David’s backyard and even going for a dip in the pool. Nokwethemba was even lucky enough to receive some swimming instruction from David himself! The next week, the members participated in a rhino blessing in iSimangaliso, the World Heritage Site bordering St Lucia. After driving through Isimangaliso and not seeing any rhino the group stopped at Cape Vidal to enjoy a light snack while taking in the beauty of the ocean.  Some of the members walked down to the beach to get their feet wet, while David and Bheki decided to go for a swim. A blessing was performed by Mrs. Mbuyazi in the hopes that poachers will be less likely to kill iSimangaliso’s rhinos because of the religious beliefs of the area.

Home Based Care

Our regular home based care patients have done well this month. We distributed a cane to George Ntuli of Khula, who has been suffering from leg and back pain, and a walker to Khula’s Gogo High BP.  The smile on Gogo high BP’s face when she saw the walker was priceless and she was eager to use it. Khula’s Gogo Smiling and Big Man also received canes that were donations from the container donated last June by two former volunteers.

Over the Christmas holiday we were sad to discover that Snenhlanhla, a small girl with a history of domestic abuse, has been moved away from the Gogo who was caring for her. We are in the process of locating her and are hopeful that the Gogo will regain possession of the girl.

Thirsa and Nokwethemba worked on a new home based care plan that will ensure no patient is missed on the weekly rounds by making weekly plans for home based care visits. The first week of the new plan was a success and we are eager to utilize it in the coming weeks. 

Afterschool Club

The volunteers were excited to take part in both the Khula and Ezwenelisha Afterschool clubs this month. After a few weeks of the kids at Khula Afterschool Club leaving after eating their meal (not understanding we were there to play) large numbers of kids have started to stay behind to play relay races, Octopus, soccer baseball and colour. Thirsa had brought some coloring pages with her that were a hit in both Khula and Ezwenelisha. The children at Khula enjoyed sitting and coloring in the farm scene, with even Shwele making her artistic abilities evident.

The volunteers are excited to start teaching a new set of students in computer classes at Ezwenelisha, which should start up again in February. Ezwenelisha has plenty of new kids who have joined the club so we’ve spent the month of January playing games, dancing and allowing them all to get to know each other. It’s been a very happy and entertaining month for all!

Creche

Community volunteer Cora teaching at
Inkanyezi creche. 

This year our crèche structure will be slightly different as the Induna has asked us to spend two months at each crèche in Khula. Creating a timetable for each crèche was difficult, but our first weeks were spent working at Malibongwe Creche with Doris and her rondavel filled with babies! The challenge at Malibongwe is that there are more babies than school age children. After some quick thinking and creating a baby box, Cora and Liz were able to focus their attention on the school-age children. The learners are now actively listening and remembering the different topics that are being taught to them.

At the end of the month the volunteers started working with Impuelelo Creche. We are all eager to see how much the children blossom during the two months that are volunteers will be there. Next week, when the numbers of volunteers on our community project are higher, we will begin working at both crèches to ensure they both receive two months with the volunteers.

HIV Education

During the abbreviated month of January the volunteers were only able to run one HIV education course. Cora, a community volunteer was a natural at leading and teaching the course to three ladies from Dukuduku Creche and has even come up with some teaching resources and great ideas which we hope to incorporate into upcoming adult HIV education sessions. With the beginning of the school year in January, Mr. Dlomo at Ubuhlebembelo has asked us to begin our primary school HIV education courses in February.

AMREF Garden

The month of January allowed us to clear the entire AMREF garden plot after our beans and mealies were unsuccessful over the Christmas holidays. However, next week we will be planting potatoes and more beans to be given out on our home based care project.