Orphan Day Care and HIV/AIDS Education
NELSON MANDELA
St. Lucia is situated within the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, a beautiful area that was declared South Africa's first Natural World Heritage Site by UNESCO and which is called by many Africa's premier bush-and-beach destination. Consisting of almost half a million acres, it is a stunning and ecologically diverse area, where five different eco-systems join, and where you find savannahs, wetlands, swamps, beaches, and a great wealth of wildlife. The area is home to the Zulu tribe; a group of people with a very lively and colourful culture. St. Lucia itself is a comfortable and charismatic town, within walking distance from the beach. In this impressive setting, we offer you the opportunity to interact with and educate AIDS orphans in an orphan day care centre, as well as to get involved in educating the local community about the HIV virus.
Location: St. Lucia, North East Coast of South Africa
Age Limit: Minimum 17 years, maximum decided on potential participants' health
Required Experience: For this project, no specific experience is required
Project Highlights:
Educate and play with small children have lost their parents as a result of AIDS Help raise awareness on preventing the HIV/ AIDS virus in the local community Assist a local Home Based Care project, and provide sick people with some help in their own homes Help build classrooms at local primary schools Immerse yourself in the local Zulu culture Make friends for life
Weekend Highlights:
These are not included in your volunteering fee and can be paid for at the project Game drives in the beautiful Hluhluwe and Umfolozi National Parks Visits to the beach, and snorkling at Cape Vidal Whale, dolphin and sea turtle viewing Deep sea fishing Sunset cruises on the St. Lucia Estuary Weekend trips to Kruger National Park or Mozambique
ORPHAN DAY CARE
The St. Lucia area is heavily affected by HIV/AIDS. It is believed that in some communities, up to 70 percent of people are infected with the virus. As a result, many children are orphaned. Most of these children live with their relatives, but they are often left by themselves during the day, as their caretakers have day jobs. To keeps these children off the streets, and to make sure they are well looked after and educated, a local pastor started an orphan day care centre a few years ago. The centre is a heart-warming place, where up to 80 children, ages 1 to 5, get dropped off each morning. The orphans are looked after by a few dedicated local women, who bravely do a fantastic job, but are overwhelmed by the number of children. As a volunteer, you will help take care of the orphans, and give them the individual attention they desperately need.
You will be involved in the following: Teaching the children simple English lessons Read children's books to them Play general games, sing songs, and do drawings Help refurbish the very basic orphanage building Help cook for the orphans and bathe them
HIV/AIDS EDUCATION
In St. Lucia's local community, many myths about HIV/AIDS still prevail. A large percentage of local South Africans believe that the virus is a result of witchcraft, and people infected with it are often rejected from their own communities and families. As a result, many people who are infected do not admit to having the virus. Not many people know how to prevent infection, and even fewer people know how to deal with the virus once they have it. Working together with a local organization dedicated to fighting the existing myths surrounding HIV/AIDS (and run mostly by people infected with the virus), you will go out into the local communities to help educate people on the nature of the virus. During your project, you will visit both schools and community centres, and do the following: Explain, through a simple method approved by the UN what the HIV/AIDS virus actually is, and how it affects a human body Educate people about how the virus is transmitted, and how infection can be prevented Explain how, after infection, life can be prolonged through medication, healthy food, and a more healthy lifestyle
ADDITIONAL COMMUNITY PROJECTS
Besides looking after orphaned children and raising awareness about the HIV/AIDS virus, you will be involved in the following community projects:
Home Based Care Project
Run by a small group of local women, the St. Lucia Home Based Care Project provides sick people with support and medical assistance in their own homes. The patients generally have HIV, TB or Malaria and often cannot afford to go the clinic or hospital. The Home Based Care Project brings food and medical supplies, and the patients are given advice on nutrition and the correct way to take their medication. The support group also sometimes cooks and cleans for patients who have no family. As a volunteer, you have the opportunity to join the women on their visits to patients in the community, and contribute to the support they offer.
Building and Refurbishing Classrooms
Primary schools in St. Lucia are often run down, and have a lack of classrooms, particularly in the more rural and remote areas. As a volunteer, you will visit these schools, and help fix roofs and windows, paint walls, and help build new classrooms. You will find that the children and teachers greatly appreciate your presence and support, and your work will be highly rewarding.
FURTHER INFORMATION
A Typical Day in St. Lucia:
Here is how a typical day in the life of a St Lucia volunteer might take shape. Please note that your itineraries may differ from this, depending on your own experience and the number of other volunteers on the placement at the same time, and this is simply to give an example: 06:30 Get up, eat breakfast, and start getting ready for your project 07:00 Head off on the short drive to the orphan day care center 07:30 Start your work at the orphan day care center. You may read simple books with the children or teach them English, or play games and sing songs with them. 12:00 Lunch break. You will be picked up from the orphan day care center, and taken to your volunteer house, where lunch is waiting for you. 13.30 Start of your afternoon projects. You may be visiting schools or community centers to teach people about HIV/AIDS, or join the local Home Based Day Care project. 16.30 End of the working day. You will be picked up from your project and taken home, where we evaluate the day and discuss the schedule for the next day. 18.30 Dinner at your volunteer house. After dinner, you may wish to go for a few drinks in one of the local bars.
Project Cost:
| GBP (£) | USD ($) | |
| 1 month placement | 1195 | 2390 |
Project Cost Includes:
Project Cost Excludes:
www.happyafricafoundation.org
Regd UK Charity Number: 1123529
Pathfinders and The Happy Africa Foundation
Pathfinders is proud to have been instrumental in the establishment of The Happy Africa Foundation and continues to be one of the Foundations major supporters. Donations made to support our community and conservation initiatives by private donors as well as by Pathfinders as a voluntoursim company are managed and distributed on our behalf by The Happy Africa Foundation.
The mission of The Happy Africa Foundation is to empower the African people through the support of community and conservation based initiatives that operate at grass roots level.
Conservation Development:
The Happy Africa Foundation works together with local African communities to conserve and protect the environment, wildlife and cultures in areas where the Foundation is involved. Thus, the Foundation supports, financially or logistically (or both), local and international organizations that operate projects supporting conservation education and research at a grass roots level.
Community Development:
The Happy Africa Foundation strives to initiate, facilitate and support community development projects that are sustainable. As such, The Happy Africa Foundation makes every effort to ensure and takes relevant measures in assessing, planning and monitoring community development projects for the benefit of local African communities.
The Happy Africa Foundation provides travellers, volunteers and other donors with a chance to give back to the communities they visit or volunteer in on their African journeys, or that they wish to support remotely through donations.
Project Orientation:
Upon arrival in St. Lucia you will have a comprehensive three-day orientation program, which is included in your fee. This is facilitated by your project volunteer coordinator and entails: An introduction to St. Lucia and its area An intensive introduction into the syllabus we use for HIV/AIDS education An introduction to all our projects. Not only will you see where you will be working, you will also see where your fellow volunteers will be spending their days. A basic language course. You will learn some basic words and sentences in Zulu, the local language in St. Lucia, so that you can communicate with people in their own language. In addition, you will learn some of the local cultural nuances. A visit to a rural area, so that you get a good idea of how local people live At the orientation, you will also receive our detailed ‘welcome pack', which will contain further useful information for your time with us.
Project Support:
Throughout your stay at your placement you will have the support and guidance of experienced field-workers and coordinators. They are part of our greater African Impact support team, and will provide you with competent 24-hour field support and assistance.
Project Accommodation:
During your project, you will stay at our large and comfortable project house. Situated in the middle of St. Lucia, it is a fully furnished house with a large lounge, satellite television, barbeque area, garden, swimming pool, and a jacuzzi. The house is staffed with cooks and laundry/cleaning ladies. All bedding is provided, so you will not need to bring a sleeping bag with you. Though sometimes it is useful in the colder months (June – September). You will be sharing a bedroom with one to four people. Members of our African Impact team will be staying on the same property, so that they are always available to you for any questions or issues you may have.
We find that volunteers living together and working closely together with their volunteer co-ordinators is the surest way of guaranteeing their safety and being able to attend to their most pressing needs. For this reason, we expect all volunteers to stay only in the accommodation provided for them and do not allow volunteers to spend nights away in the town or nearby villages, unless they are away on pre-arranged sightseeing excursions.
Project Meals:
You will be provided with three meals a day. Breakfast is on a help-yourself basis and usually consists of cereals/porridge, toast, tea and coffee. Lunch and dinner are full meals, and will be cooked for you by one of our chefs at your volunteer house. Project Getting There: The destination manager will assist you with the procedures!! The nearest airport to St. Lucia is Richards Bay Airport, which is about a forty-five minute drive from St. Lucia. There are daily flights from Johannesburg to Richards Bay and these can be booked online at www.flysax.com Excerpt from the SAWUBONA South African Airways in-flight magazine, April 2007 “We ducked to avoid overhanging branches on the edge of a dark patch of forest, then climbed up and up until we were on top of this wetland world. We looked across the tallest forested dunes in Africa to the sparkling Indian Ocean. On our other side lay shimmering Lake St Lucia; a white rhino grazed below us. To the north and south, the rolling grasslands and dunes to the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park. We wandered down to the lakeside to watch the sunset. Hippos stared balefully from the water and a crocodile slithered in. Buck came down to drink, while the birdlife – some 526 species throughout the park – had us looking in every direction…” [Jill Gowans].