The farm forms the foundation upon which all the African Blessings projects are run and is located strategically between three major rural communities straddling Gauteng and Mpumalanga (Rethabiseng, Ekangala and Zithobeni). African Blessings, together with African Hills, provides employment and further training opportunities within these communities. The African Blessings NPO has three main focus areas which include Joechebed's Childrens Village, the Baby Centre and the Education Centre.
Jochebed Children's Village
The housing consists of 16 individual homes, each designed to accommodate a family of two house parents and six children. The design and construction of Jochebed allows us to provide a safe and nurturing “forever home” environment for up to 96 children.
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Each home is headed by a foster parent or parents, and is designed to function as a regular household and family environment would, including all of the daily elements that so many of us take for granted.
On returning home from school, the children can share their day’s adventures with their foster parents and spend the afternoon swimming, visiting the farm animals, going for walks or riding their bicycles. Weekends are spent as a family, and our children enjoy treats and outings like going for a Wimpy milkshake, just as any child does!
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Each house is furnished and decorated in a homely fashion, and has a kitchen, dining room and lounge. The children all have their own bed, toys and cupboard for their belongings, and they are encouraged to decorate their bedroom area as their own.
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At African Blessings, we believe it is imperative to ensure that each child grows up in an environment where they are loved, supported and above all else, can feel safe and secure. It is our aim to have all 16 homes functional as soon as possible so that The Village can provide for even more at-risk children.
African Blessings is 100% reliant on donations from our sponsors and the general public, without which the work we do would not be possible.
We pray and faithfully believe that we will be blessed with the opportunity to expand our work and help more children in need.
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If you would like to become involved and help us with this work, please click here to be re-directed to the African Blessings site.
Baby Centre
The African Blessings Baby Centre is run alongside the education centre, allowing for familial integration through the day. This process allows the babies to become familiar with potential house parents, helping to ensure a stable transition once the babies are old enough to move into one of the Jochebed Children’s Village homes. Our baby centre’s nursery is well equipped with eight cots and two care areas.
Education Centre
The African Blessings Education Centre caters for children from infancy through to Grade R. Once the children are old enough, they are placed at a local school in order to continue their education.
The African Blessings Education Centre is located on the farm and caters for children from infancy through to Grade R. The centre is based on the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) curriculum system.
We believe in creating firm foundations that help our children to succeed by providing them with an exceptional early childhood education.
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All of our children are currently between one and five years old, but once they are old enough, they will be enrolled at one of the local primary schools, and then further their education at a high school.
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Class sizes at our education centre are kept small, allowing each child to receive individual attention from our dedicated, hand-picked teachers and teachers’ aides.
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The school goes on regular outings to local attractions and hosts career awareness days for different professions, allowing the children to expand their horizons and experience different environments.
Regular activities on the farm include swimming, pony rides and push bike or bicycle riding.
African Blessings is currently in the process of developing and building a sports field, which will further enhance our ability to provide a well-rounded education.
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If you would like to become involved and help us with this work, please click here to be re-directed to the African Blessings site.
One of the children's homes recently completed
The children at the Education Centre