Hotel Hope Ministries benefit from USA university outreach
MELVILLE – The outreach project ensured the organisation received material that would help young girls as well as caregivers in youth care centres.
Hotel Hope Ministries was the recipient of new training course material specifically for two of their programs in Melville and Alexandra.
It was compiled by the Chicago School of Professional Psychology, an American university that focuses on mental health and nursing programs, with whom the two organizations have had an ongoing partnership for the past six years.
The Esteem Programme, compiled by behaviour analyst Dr. Annette Griffiths is a nine-week course for teenage girls in impoverished environments. It aims to build their confidence, identity and self-esteem as they learn to focus on a positive future.
The Nurture Program, compiled by specialist educational psychologist Dr Pip McGirl and Dr Jaclyn Hoffmeister, is a guide for caregivers in child and youth care centres. It provides information on early childhood development, the effects of early trauma and separation from birth parents and how to build a safe, nurturing environment for the children in their care. This training manual was accompanied by a copy of the Unicef activity guide for children, along with a fun box of selected toys and activities, donated by Dr McGirl.
CEO of Hotel Hope Ministries, Oliver Quambusch said this project is a dream come true and has been in the making for nearly two years. “Instead of the team coming out from the United States, most dialogue happened in extensive Zoom meetings throughout lockdown. The end result is one of the finest teaching tools available, tailor-made to the South African context.”
The South African representative of The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Kari Prince, was present to hand over the course material and activity box to Oliver Quambush, the Social Worker Lali and Kundayi and Assistant Manager: Business Support Saneli Manvundla.
Hotel Hope Ministries plans to start rolling out The Nurture Program with the full-time caregivers at their two children’s homes in Melville and their foster home in Westdene, and The Esteem Program with small groups of teenagers through their partner schools in Alexandra.
