Introducing our Hilton Cares campaign. This is the first in a series of articles which will focus on local people, groups and organisations who humbly work behind the scenes to make someone's life a little easier. Although the challenges faced may seem too big for one to singularly make any impact, in this article we aim to inspire you to get involved in a small way, because it has been proven that each and every single tiny contribution can culminate in a giant shift towards a better future for many.
The first project we would like to draw attention to is Never Neverland Creche.
Some background information has been shared by Jane Evans, 'Zandile has been running the Never Neverland creche since she was 21 years old. She started her education at a local farm school and was selected for a bursary to Howick High. She has always loved children and saw the need for a cr??che within her own community. There are currently 40 children at the creche ranging in ages 2-6 years, many of them are HIV positive. The community of Cedara is extremely poor, there is massive unemployment so there is very little revenue for the creche from school fees. There is also extremely limited funding from the government. The creche can only exist through donations.
Hilton pre-primary has taken Zandile under their wings and every Thursday she attends classes with them so that she can gain experience to pass on to the kids in her creche. Zandile gained her National Qualification in early childhood development. She runs the little school in a most professional manner. Each day of the term is carefully planned for both education and play. Her bookkeeping is meticulous. Each donation that comes in is receipted and the whole operation is completely transparent. She has a board of governors chosen from the community and each financial decision is discussed and weighed up.
Zandile is a strong young woman totally committed to the care of the children. She has organised a mobile clinic to visit the creche once a month so that the kids get regular treatment and screening. She provides a daily meal for each child (and more often than not for the unemployed and elderly in her community too). Zandile also runs a youth club once a week for the community's teenagers. She raises funds through organising cultural functions and jumble sales. She is one of the most inspiring and positive people that I have ever met, nothing gets her down, she always has a big smile and hands out plenty of hugs to her beloved kids.
The next jumble sale is on April 19th so we are looking for donations of food, clothes, kitchen ware and anything else that folk can donate instead of throwing away!
Donations can be left at Hilton Travel at the Lower Quarry.