Helping ‘each one’ get an education

A GLEN HILLS family, Rodney, Eshia, Alea and Rea Govender are doing what they can, with what is in their hands, to share with the temporarily impoverished communities in the north of Durban.

Each One Reach 1 (EOR1), which was founded in 2012, focuses on mentoring the youth by affording them peer-to-peer support and the introduction of extra-curricular lifestyle alternatives.

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One of those programmes is the Kings Kin United Football Club which meets every week at Blackburn grounds, growing since 2018 to 50 children (comprised of girls and boys).

They are constantly in need of sports equipment, in particular, soccer equipment, and previously owned soccer boots.

The club is managed by coach Sandile Zulu, who works full-time as a waitron manager and volunteers in an attempt to inspire healthy lifestyles among teenagers and to eradicate substance abuse.

“Our mandate remains to break the cycles of abuse, poverty and addiction through mentorship and training,” said Dr Eshia Moodley-Govender.

Some of the other programmes the organisation runs are: Seniors’ Wisdom Carriers Club, NPOs Connecting Communities, EOR1 Family Support Line, Circle of Sisterhood/Brotherhood, Boots and Books, Teen Leadership Camp, and Homeless Love Kitchen, among others.

READ ALSO: Greenwood Park Primary principal bids farewell after 21 years

“The organisation does not have any employed staff, and hence, volunteers are qualitative in their approach. We care deeply about the participants. Volunteers listen to the children and community leaders and wish to witness sustainable transformation,” she said.

This year, the organisation’s mission is to start a learning and teaching centre in Kwamathambo, near Redhill. The children are learning to teach.

“Over the past few years, we have watched these children develop in confidence and passion. Our weekly visits are celebrated with a hunger for more. We may not see the fruits of our labour, but we have planted seeds that break the cycles of addiction, abuse and poverty by showcasing a healthier alternative to life,” said Moodley-Govender.

The children will be assisted with homework, computers for research, bridging of missed concepts and critical thinking to prepare them for work readiness, tertiary and entrepreneurship readiness, financial planning, sporting mentorship, creativity, and spiritual-values-based training.

They will also be taught hospitality, environmentalism and tourism – through the preparation of their own meals and clean-up of the environment, and will get to go on excursions.

One thing is missing though, and that’s a shipping container to get the project off the ground.

“We are currently working from a small tin house, generously donated by a community member. We have partnered with dedicated community leaders and their team to set up this centre, which once systemised will be later managed by the community leaders under a registered entity,” said Moodley-Govender.

“It has been an eventful journey, but we are still determined to see the young community of Kwamathambo through. If you would like to sponsor a shipping container towards this programme, we would greatly appreciate it. Every child deserves fun alternatives to carry them into adulthood, away from negative influences,” she added.

EOR1 has several programmes that require sponsorships and skilled volunteers in the Phoenix, Redhill and Greenwood Park areas.

“Come join our family. To know them is to love them,” she said.

For more details, call 082 503 5170.

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