Start a Preschool for 60 Children in South Africa

Dear Friends,

On September 22, Siyabonga Early Childhood Education Center had a special group of visitors from the United States, including two Board Members from Even Ground and Even Ground’s new Executive Director. The children were surprised to see them and quite shy at first. However, once the group volunteered to help the students with an art activity they were doing, the children quickly warmed up to them. The teachers also enjoyed meeting and working with the visitors and told the Director of the Center they wished the day would never end. The Director reported that they all felt that the visitors were humble, down-to-earth people who truly cared about the children and the work they are doing at the Center. She was glad that they were so interested to learn about the challenges their community faces and the needs of the Center. The day ended with the visitors giving the children some toys they had brought and, in return, the children performed a traditional Zulu dance for them - a rhythmic dance where they kick their legs high and then bring them down with a thump.

Even Ground’s Executive Director reported that he and the Board Members were most impressed with the quality of the teaching and with the Director’s engagement with the students. The children are alert, active, and well behaved, he said, a good indicator of the success of the program. They were pleased to learn that nearly all the parents of the children at the center are involved in the development and implementation of the program through monthly meetings where they discuss school objectives, curriculum, and nutrition. He commented that the work done there is extraordinary given the depth of challenges the area faces around lack of infrastructure, food security, HIV/AIDS, and sustainable livelihoods.

One of the immediate challenges that the center faces is the severe drought that has been plaguing the region for the past months. The municipal water supply has been dried up for many weeks, and the center’s back-up rainwater collection system is also depleted due to the lack of rain. The lack of water has made even basic activities like cooking and hand washing a huge challenge for center staff, and has also delayed the completion of the landscaping and outdoor play area. The Board members recognized that addressing the Center’s water needs is a priority, as is finding a way to provide ongoing funding.

After seeing the program first-hand, our Board members are more motivated than ever to raise more funds to increase the number of children served, to improve the curriculum, to hire more staff, and to help solve challenges like the current water crisis. But we need your help to do so.

As we begin our annual fall campaign to raise the funds necessary to keep offering essential services to young children and to grow our programs to help more young people in need, we want to reach out to all of you to thank you for your support and to ask for your continued assistance. If you are considering helping us out again this season, we wanted to let you know that this coming Wednesday, October 15, at 9:00 am EDT / 6:00 am PDT, Global Giving will be giving a 30% match on your donations. Check out our program page for more information.

All the best,

Helen and the staff of Siyabonga