Johannesburg, 26 Jun 2008
IT services and solutions provider, Datacentrix, has joined forces with the Hearts of Hope Foundation, a registered Section 21 Company (non-profit), donating R20 000 towards the renovation of the I'themba Children's Home in Wendywood, Johannesburg.
According to Chad Baker, a director at Hearts of Hope and IBM executive, the foundation sets up homes for children who have been abandoned, are ill or are without adult protection. It also acts as a conduit of support for other groups working in the area of child support.
"Our vision is to provide a platform of family based care for vulnerable children who are affected and/or infected by HIV/AIDS. We do this through the establishment of homes, managing cost-effective, family-based cluster units that provide a loving and caring home to vulnerable children, supporting disadvantaged schools through the provision of equipment, training, feeding schemes and HIV awareness programmes, and holistic interventions caring for vulnerable people in the broader community.
"The I'themba Children's Home was purchased in Wendywood in December 2007. The home will initially accommodate six to eight children and a foster mother. This will have an immediate impact on the community by providing a safe haven for children in our care.
"In addition, the home provides a developmental facility for occupational therapy intervention and school readiness programmes, as required," explains Baker. "It will be the platform for Hearts of Hope from which all projects will be managed."
The foundation opted for a house in the Northern suburbs of Johannesburg due to its proximity to donors, safe and secure access for volunteers, nearness to good schools (within walking distance) and established taxi access for employees.
"The home will be a 'storehouse' from which all our projects can be distributed to and will allow us to avoid off-site storage costs. Social worker services are an essential ingredient for all our projects - the house provides a facility from where they can work and all our projects could access these services. In addition, funders and participants have a destination to go to assess the organisation and the projects before deciding on their level of involvement," Baker adds.
According to Johann Coetzee, general manager - Johannesburg at Datacentrix, the foundation's commitment to providing an environment that allows for the nurturing and supporting of children in a way that enables them to realise their full potential fit perfectly with Datacentrix's aim to build a brighter, better South Africa.
"On behalf of the Heart of Hope Foundation, we invite other local companies to lend their support to renovating and equipping the I'themba Children's Home as well as assisting with the foundation's numerous other projects."
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