About Thembalitsha

Thembalitsha is a UK registered charity providing education, healthcare and training in South Africa. The word Thembalitsha is the Xhosa for “new hope”. The charity works in Grabouw in the Western Cape, a desperately poor community where 1 in 3 people has HIV/AIDS. Thembalitsha creates hope through 6 vital services which the government does not provide:

     1.      Graceland, a preschool for 2 – 5 year olds. Many of the parents    work as fruit pickers in the Cape vineyards; and alcoholism and related social ills are prevalent at home.

2.      ThembaCare is a palliative unit providing a 7 bed hospice for those with HIV/AIDS. There is also a voluntary HIV testing and counselling service.

3.      Themba Training teaches adults business principles and practical life skill such as sewing and computer skills, enabling them to find work.

4.      Mama Themba is a programme aimed at new mothers, giving pre- and ante-natal classes, and teaching how to avoid passing on the HIV virus to babies.

5.      Village of Hope provides a safe, loving home to young children infected or affected by HIV/AIDS and TB; as well as educating and caring for children in the community of Grabouw through sports-based social outreach.

6.      School of Hope is a high school enabling young people who didn't finish secondary education (due to gang membership, pregnancy and so forth) to pass Grade 12. Learners include former street children, addicts and survivors of abusive homes. 6% of the young girls attending are mothers themselves. Many experience hunger and poverty on a daily basis.

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