Helping the homeless back on their feet
At Tower of Life Homeless Shelter lives have been changed and lives have been lost, but such is the way of life.
People come and go. Some get healthy, some don’t. Some celebrate birthdays and others have passed on. Workers at the Tower of Life Shelter have seen it all.
“It’s Krugersdorp’s only homeless shelter,” Anthony Weilbach, CEO of the shelter told the News at a Wednesday night dinner at the shelter.
“It is mainly a men’s shelter. Some men come from as far as the Free State and the Western Cape. Drug addiction is the biggest cause of their ending up on the streets,” he said.
Anthony started the shelter alongside his adoptive father, founder of a local orphanage The Bethany House Trust, Gert Jonker, because of these social issues the town is faced with. He told the News he has a strong need to help others, because he knows how they feel and what they are going through.
For R20 a night, a homeless person is provided with one of the 80 available beds, linen, pillows and blankets, a shower with shampoo and conditioner and a plate of food. On Wednesdays, the team from Dynamix, an addiction fighting support group, pays them a visit.
And they bring along cake.
“The stories you hear at this shelter will shock you,” Marius Harmse, Dynamix coordinator told the News.
“But because we all have been through what many of these men and women have been through, we are able to talk to each other.”
Marius believes sometimes all you have to do to help someone going through a rough time, is listen. The intervening comes later, he said.
Like many of the homeless at the shelter, Anthony knows what it’s like to live on the streets.
“I lost both my parents when I was very young and ended up wandering the streets until Gert found me. I went to Bethany House and was adopted soon by Gert,” he said.
This is where Anthony found the fuel that drove his need to help. He wanted to open his own non-profit organisation to help other young boys who have nowhere else to go. He managed an underage shelter until he too fell into the claws of addiction.
“It really takes a hold of you, and you struggle to break free from it.”
But soon he did, and he started working on Tower of Life, talking and sharing with those who know too well what it’s like to look at life from within a ‘black hole’.
If you would like to donate R20 vouchers and help a homeless person, contact Anthony on 060 992 8719.
Also read:
• UPDATE: Michael begs no more
• [VIDEO] Homeless man offered help but refused
• In their shoes: a night on the street
