Holah baby home moves to new premises in Crestholme
HOLAH baby house is moving from Northdene to a beautiful property in Crestholme and has appealed to the Highway community to support them.
HOUSE of Love and Hope (Holah) Baby Home will be moving to its new premises on Friday, 23 October.
The new house in Crestholme was inherited by co-founder, Kim Brown and together with her partner, Leanne Lorrance they have decided to use it to improve the lives of the children under their care.
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The baby home, which was initially located in Northdene, was started by Lorrance and Brown after they noticed the need to provide abandoned children with a safe and happy place until they can be placed with adoptive families.
The babies have either been abandoned, orphaned, given up for adoption or removed from their parents’ care.
Brown said the little ones come to them through Durban Child Welfare, child protection organisations or the South African Police Services (SAPS) with many babies being as young as a few hours old.
The children’s time spent at the home ranges from a couple of days to four years.
“The reason some of them stay longer is that we also care for children with special needs. This is one of the reasons this was a perfect decision as the house we rented in Northdene did not have enough space and it had stairs, which proved a challenge for wheelchair-bound children,” said Lorrance.
Lorrance and Brown met in Australia and when Brown decided to return to South Africa, Lorrance joined her.
The couple said there is a great need for baby homes in South Africa where children can feel loved.
“We started with one child which we ended up adopting. When we came to the country, we were volunteering at another baby home, we loved it and it just became a natural thing to us to care for children,” said Lorrance.
The pair also has a charity shop (HOP shop) which is a fundraising initiative for the home.
The Glenwood-based shop helps them to cover the charity overheads.
“The shop is full of interesting goodies, ranging from baby clothes, toys, shoes and other items, as well as books, clothes, shoes, houseware and more,” said Brown.
Lorrance said they were excited to be moving to the Highway area as they have heard that the community is very supportive.
“Kim inherited this place and we decided to put it into good use. Here, we can even have animals which will help the children with therapy and are hoping to plant vegetables we can sell,” said Lorrance.
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The home has nine carers and a handyman. They are always in need of volunteers.
“Now that we have a bigger space and have so many projects which we would like to start, we will be grateful for garden experts and other specialists who can help our children,” said Brown.
Anyone who would like assist the home with volunteering, groceries or baby items can WhatsApp Brown on 083 232 5501 or email kim@likhonithemba.co.za.
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