A house becomes a home in Sunninghill in the name of Nelson Mandela
SUNNINGHILL – The teams from Netcare Sunninghill Hospital and Netcare Waterfall Hospital spent their Mandela Day creating a home for the children of Shammah House.
Mandela Day was the realisation of Netcare Sunninghill and Netcare Waterfall Hospital‘s vision.
The 18 July was the culmination of weeks of planning, working and fundraising. The passion of human resources manager, Clare Pimenta and the management and staff of these two hospitals carried out the legacy of Nelson Mandela and in so doing, brought light, warmth and comfort to twelve orphaned children.
The carers and children of Shammah House for abandoned children recently moved into a house that was donated to the orphanage. The house was derelict, rundown and in a very bad and barely inhabitable condition. So began a project, the ending of which was nothing short of miraculous.
A plea for assistance was put out and the staff of these two hospitals, as well as Netcare 911, heeded the call. Netcare Sunninghill’s pharmacy manager, Natasha Conrad and her amazing pharmacy team did a major fundraising exercise which resulted in the purchase of a TV set, a DVD player and piles of DVDs.
The neonatal unit’s raffle raised enough money to purchase a box of blankets. Staff and doctors gave from their hearts as donations of clothes, toys, blankets, foodstuffs and essential medical supplies poured in. Netcare Waterfall bought a new couch and mattresses for the children, while Netcare Sunninghill bought chairs, curtains and pictures.
Sunninghill’s technical department spent a week working tirelessly on the roof and structure of the house and completed the damp-proofing and painting on Mandela Day.
On 18 July, Netcare 911, Netcare Sunninghill and Netcare Waterfall staff arrived en masse. While some got to work on painting the inside of the house, hanging curtains and pictures, others washed clothes, cleaned windows and cooked the evening meal.
The rest of the volunteers entertained the children. At midday, the children were treated to a McDonald’s meal, a walk through an ambulance and were given party packs, doctors’ sets and toys. Even Titus, the home’s dog, was presented with a new basket, blanket and treats.
The day climaxed with hardly a dry eye when the 12 children, wide-eyed with wonder, were led into their new home. To quote Mandela, “It always seems impossible until it is done.”
The organisers salute all those for making this possible. Thanks to their contributions and hard work a broken-down structure has been transformed into a beautiful house and above all, a haven and home for twelve orphaned children.
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