Five kind-hearted women in Eastbank are depleting their own household income, food and energy to save ailing lives.
The women, who live in the former TB Clinic settlement next to the Eastbank Clinic, have been feeding hundreds of outpatients from this clinic weekly. Supported by contributions from their spouses’ income and from own pension payments, they say their act of compassion resulted from seeing sick people collapsing on the road in front of their houses, or begging for food after treatment at the clinic.
Most of them are pregnant, have TB, epilepsy, high blood pressure, diabetes, HIV/Aids or dementia, which require intake of medication with food – which the clinic doesn’t provide.
To respond effectively to the patients’ unrelenting requests, the women have now formed a non-profit organisation, GoodHope/Ikhaya Lethu, into which they make monthly contributions of between R200 and R500 each. Its executive members are Duduzile Mnguni, who is the chairperson; Lindiwe Baloyi, who is the secretary; and Mandy Mpulo, her deputy. Alina Thonjeni is the treasurer and Bridget Mnyando is her deputy.
According to Baloyi, it would be a heartless act not to feed these people, especially knowing their health condition and also the prevailing poverty in the area.
“We virtually subsidise [city] council and government from our own pockets by feeding 220 to 250 patients daily with tea, bread, soup and porridge in the morning and afternoons. When resources are a bit plentiful we add peanut butter, vegetables, pap and meat to the diet. Also, we feed 40 to 45 poor school children from nearby schools daily, and at times supplement this feeding with our own household food items. Most of them are orphans, come from child- or granny-headed households, or have unemployed single young mothers with limited parenting skills. They also need uniforms, school shoes, sanitary and washing items and food parcels,” she added.
Besides the patients and school children, they also feed volunteer health workers from the clinic. Commending the organisation’s work, one of the volunteers, Sithembiso Khumalo, said epilepsy patients in particular would easily die straight after treatment if they did not receive food.
Despite the limited resources, the organisation commits to continue its charitable work; according to Baloyi, the clinic has also asked them to increase their support because council does not include feeding in the clinic’s budget. To do so, she appeals for partnerships and donations of food items, kitchen and other related equipment.
Details: Lindiwe Baloyi 073 558 5557.
