Glenwood resident joins donation drive to assist crisis centre

WORKING to assist men and women facing unplanned pregnancy are the members of the non-profit-company, Hope for the Heart Pregnancy Care Centre. In a bid to raise funds for the NPC’s work, Glenwood resident Cheron Symington and her mother, Natalie van den Blink, are collecting donations towards the centre’s thrift store. The thrift store is open on the first Saturday of the month at the centre’s Wentworth base, offering affordable items to the community as well as to clients of the care centre. There is also a tombola planned for Saturday, December 3.

While Symington set out to volunteer for the centre, she ended up gaining from the experience.

“I wanted to work with women and reached out to a local Durban organisation which referred me to Hope for the Heart. I do a lot of sorting of donations, but I also join the Mother Wellness Community support group, and I have gotten a lot out of it. I didn’t intend to join the group, but I have gotten such support from it. Fundamentally, we all go through the same things domestically, even if we are in different income brackets. We all want to protect our children, and we want the best for them,” said Symington.

Although the NPC is based in Wentworth, their work reaches far and wide, says Hope for the Heart founder Jane Wright.

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“We started the non-profit company in 2017, in Wentworth. Since Covid-19, we have changed the way we do things. We are at the Wentworth offices just two days a week now. The remainder of the week is spent out in the field – we have clients across Durban and as far as Cape Town and Lesotho. We were created to assist vulnerable men and women facing unplanned pregnancy,” explained Wright.

The centre offers four core programmes centred around education, counselling, support groups and workshops.

The first programme on the list is the pregnancy-options counselling, which is offered to parents facing an unplanned pregnancy.

“When clients find out they are pregnant and don’t know what to do, we educate them on all the options available to them, including parenting, adoption and abortion,” said Wright.

The single parents’ support-and-assist programme offers support and assistance.

“We have donations given to us, including baby formula, nappies and babies’ clothes, which we distribute to our clients. We also offer the Mother Wellness Community support group at our Wentworth offices, for mothers who come in weekly on a Thursday.

“It’s a space to share their challenges and difficulties, and most mothers come in with their children. Finally, we offer the Legacy Dad workshop where we offer men guidance on what is expected of them as fathers,” said Wright.

The centre also offers counselling to men and women post-abortion or after a miscarriage. The fourth programme at the centre is their sexual health education programme.

“We go into schools and campuses and offer a nine-week programme. We can also do a standalone lesson. Some schools just request a certain part of the programme, and we can break up the course according to their preferences,” said Wright.

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Contact details

For more information, contact Hope for the Heart Pregnancy Care Centre on their WhatsApp or call line, 064 890 9324, or email: admin@hopefortheheart.org.za. For more information, visit the website www. hopefortheheart.org.za or find the organisation on Facebook – Hope for the Heart PCC.

Thrift collection

The Hope for Heart thrift shop is open on the first Saturday of the month at Blue Roof Life Space, 178 Austerville Drive, Wentworth. Cheron is collecting donations of working appliances, cutlery, crockery, plastic containers and even half-finished perfume or hair products, as well as baby and childrens’ clothes, towels and home accessories. Some donations are distributed to women in need while other items furnish the thrift store. Contact Symington to arrange delivery or pick up at 083 661 5445.