A Greenpoint resident made her dream of owning an ECD centre and a feeding scheme programme aimed at alleviating hunger in her community a reality.
A GREENPOINT resident, Saartjie Jonas, who owns Shalom Christian School and Daycare Early Childhood Development (ECD) Centre, rose like a phoenix from the ashes to make her dream of owning an ECD centre and a feeding scheme programme aimed at alleviating hunger in her community a reality.
Jonas said she had to rebuild her dreams and aspirations after the previous ECD centre she was running with a co-owner burnt down in 2013.
She said it took much courage not to lose hope after the ECD centre, which was located in the backyard of her mother’s house, went up in flames.
“In 2006, myself and another woman started a crèche (ECD centre). That woman now also owns her own ECD centre in the area. In 2013, a group of army members were supposed to come and spend Mandela Day at the crèche. The members were going to paint the crèche as part of commemorating the day. However, the crèche burnt to ashes on that same day,” said Jonas.
“We were unable to carry on with the plan as everything was destroyed. My mother’s house was also totally destroyed by the inferno. I was totally devastated as there was nothing to salvage from that situation. I was gutted as my dream not only went up in flames, but my mother’s house was also burnt down.”
Jonas said the army members gave her a Wendy house which she used to look after the children in the area.
“Luckily, the members were kind enough to donate a Wendy house to me. I then proceeded with that Wendy house. It was tough, but I kept pushing on. I never received any assistance from any government department. Sol Plaatje came to build a shanty for my mother after the fire. Despite the challenges, I made a decision not to give up on my dreams.”
She said the idea to start a crèche was sparked back in 2002.
“In 2002, the then provincial police commissioner brought a group of women in Greenpoint together and asked us how we thought we could make a difference in our community and fight the social ills we are faced with. That was when we decided to start a local crèche.
“We saw that there were many children who were roaming from one soup kitchen to another. We realised that the crèche would be a place where they would be safe. We then also used the crèche to not only feed them but to also educate them.”
Jonas said that as the years passed and she worked on her dream to fight hunger in her community, sponsors amazingly opened their hearts to her.
“I then wanted to start a feeding scheme programme as I saw how many people and children had to go without food. At that stage, I realised that I had no funds to even start such a programme. However, Meals on Wheels sponsored the crèche with some food.
“We would take the food that was leftover from what we fed the children, and go feed the needy residents at Thompson Shanties. I did this with my husband and children. We would find long queues of people lined up to get a meal. We managed to feed them with the little amount of food we had. Other people and organisations also started reaching out to me. I had a person who donated vegetables to me and we would make soup for the people.”
She said the feeding scheme grew larger and she was able to not only feed the young children but also hungry adults.
“As time passed, the Christian Revival Church (CRC) approached me and asked me whether I wanted to start a nutrition programme. The church had a sponsor that donated nutrition porridge packs. I then decided to reach out to various crèches in other parts of Kimberley to also benefit from the nutrition programme. I took a taxi to Roodepan, Galeshewe and other areas to inform them about the programme.”
Jonas said the Covid-19 pandemic once again highlighted the plight of hunger in the community.
“Many people were affected in different ways by Covid-19. Our crèche learners and the people whom we fed during the nutrition programme were forced to go hungry due to the many lockdown restrictions. Many had to miss out on a meal when some of us were complaining about movement restrictions.”
Jonas, who now has three facilities on the crèche premises, added that she still has many goals to reach.
“I use the main building as the classroom and kitchen. That facility was sponsored by Petra Diamonds. We also have a separate facility which we use as an isolation ward. We still have the Wendy house which we started with. My actual dream is to feed and take care of children for free. This crèche is by no means for me to earn money or make a living, but to give a helping hand to those in need,” she said with a smile.
