By Louise Batty | Managing Director
Dear Friends and Partners of Keep The Dream196,
Our program is powerful and impactful and has been for over 15years! Why? Part of the reason for this sustained impact that has changed the lives of over 12,000 children is because of activities that we run at camp. Camp allows the kids to come out of their home environments, the stresses, the strains of caring for elderly or ill parents, the fear of being taken (kidnapped) to winter initiation school, the boredom associated with having unstructured school holidays.
We train those who are able to come to camp, its not camping for the sake of camping! The camps we run are life changing. We train the children in a variety of skills that the children will use throughout their lives. Training such as: HIV prevention, support and treatment; First Aid; Boys2Men training which unpacks what is a real man in today’s society, often we have found that boys have no clue about what is a real male role model. So often young men see men having a BMW, gold chains, a slew of children and an international model on each arm as success. No thought as to what is real!
We help young men identify the truth! We help them envisage how they would like their own children to remember them! Because we deal with Orphaned and Vulnerable children, out of 100 boys who have attended training 90% didn’t have fathers. Their fathers were absent from their lives, deceased, or in jail. Of the 10% remaining 80% of those wished they didn’t have fathers because of the abuse experienced. This is such a sad indictment on the role of fathers in families and in society. The function of a father was reduced to that of supplying needs only. The boys stated that fathers are there to provide money for food, shelter and school fees and uniforms. That was it that is their experience. Each child stated that was all they thought a father’s role was because that was all they had experienced.
Now we know that fathers provide so much more however that is not their experience and then we wonder why young men have twice the HIV rate as the females, why the teenage pregnancy rate is so high and why the young men do not take any responsibility for the children they have created. They do not know any different!! A majority have never experienced Fathering themselves.
This training is essential for building a healthy tomorrow. For creating well balanced families, well balanced and secure children who have active Fathers in their lives for the future. Fathers who are there to provide love, care and support! Fathers who are there to guide their children into becoming responsible citizens for the future. Fathers who will discipline and protect their children from making mistakes. Fathers who will take their role seriously. No longer will we have orphaned generations because fathers choose to be absent from their child’s life.
That is only part of what we do at camp and why your ongoing support is so important. I have started a microproject that is linked in this email for you to be able to support our vision for the future
Thank you Louise
I have included Hlulani's story again because it highlights where the boys get their information about being a man from. Winter, initiation schools that cause all manner of problem because once the boys complete the "school" they believe they are men and are not under authority and can basically do what they like with impunity. These children can be as young as 7yrs of age and have now got licence to drink alcohol, smoke, not attend school and all manner of other behaviours.
My name is Hlulani, I grew up in a dysfunctional environment where life was shaped by the behaviour of the community, and some may call it peer-pressure. I was born in 1994/11/06 in a family whereby my father was the only bread winner, this had an impact on my growth. As I grew up I had to go to school with people who had enough at their homes. I watched them tease me because I never even had pocket money. I went to school not enjoying because I was forced. When I reached grade 5 I went to initiation school and this was a turning point for me. My life became a mess, I became something I don’t even believe I was now. When I went to grade 6, both my parent had to go and work at Johannesburg to supplement the needs of the family. They left me at home with my neighbour to look after me, I then dropped out of school.
I unleashed my so called “pseudo manhood”, I thought I had it all under control and knew what I was doing. Pity I had no idea I was only fantasising which fantasies would never have had flourished, I became naughty. I did not listen to people who tried advising or putting some sense into me because I thought I was a man. I repeated grade 6 where I was always fighting and when interrogated about the fights I had no sugar-way of talking to adults I was always rude.
When I went to grade 7 I met people who were almost thinking the same way I did, we influenced each other, wherein a class a teacher could only reach the two-front row. We enjoyed that because that’s what we wanted, we did not want to be in the spotlight with teachers. By this time I was also involved with an organisation called Sizanani which worked together with Keep the Dream 196. Keep the Dream196 focused on changing the lives of teenager to the right path using the scout laws, motto, and promise which also enshrine in them words from the bible. They enforced behaviour change but a lot of us did not take them serious because we thought we were man’s enough to be playing games.
June 2009, Sizanani selected a few learners to attend a scout camp at westfalia, I was one of them with my other two friends. When we arrived at the camp we continually thought it was just for fun and did not take it serious. We continued to play at the camp and they noticed us, they separated us and created competitions. Those competitions ensured that we brought our A-game, we all wanted to win and it came to my attention that it was not about competitions but to ensure that we conform to the group, we respect other members, learn to share and to work with others.
My eyes opened, I saw a future in the scouts, I learnt to live by the laws, motto and scout promise. It impacted my life in a positive way, because they enforced that scouts are not failures, instead they smile and whistle under all difficulties and persist to achieve. I took advantage of Keep the Dream196’s vision and mission and it worked for me, I started advancing on my English, communication, writing and academics. From that point I never failed a grade with guidance provided to me by Keep the dream 196.
Keep the Dream196 monitored my progress, they realised that education provided at schools was never enough for one’s life, it needs supplements from other skills thus, they offered me some skills like teaching or training. Keep the Dream196 restored my life, they continually empowered me in a way that I said to myself that failure will never be an option. Through the leadership position I occupied my focus shifted from fake ideologies I had, to school and scouts only. It shaped what I wanted to be, I decided I wanted to be a teacher or a social worker which had to do with changing teenagers minds.
2016 January after receiving my matric results I attempted to enrol at Univen, Turf and TUT but I could not, Keep the Dream196 again came to my rescue offering me a job which was not necessary a job but skills and experience that enable me to mobilise resources to use when I do enrol at varsity. Currently I have enrolled at Wits University as a second-year social work student because of Keep the Dream196. I am well motivated and I still live by the scout laws, promise and motto, distance may take away my duties as a scout but I will always be part of Keep the Dream196’s program.
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By Louise Batty | Managing Director
By Louise Batty | Managing Director
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