Swimming a mile for The Teddy Bear Clinic
JOHANNESBURG – A team of passionate swimmers prepares to swim the Midmar Mile in support of The Teddy Bear Clinic.
A dedicated team of men and women will be swimming at the Midmar Mile in KwaZulu-Natal, on February 7 in support of The Teddy Bear Clinic.
Armas and Liisa Ferreira, Deon van Niekerk, Arthur Blake, Myles Sinclair and Sharlien Schwartz said this year will be very special for them as they are swimming for abused children.
“We are hoping to raise at least R20 000 for this worthwhile cause. If we manage to raise this amount, we will be able to change five abused children’s lives forever,” they said.
The Teddy Bear Clinic for Abused Children (TTBC) originated in 1986 in response to an urgent need for medical examinations for sexually abused children.
From there it has grown into a fully-fledged service for abused children which includes forensic medical examinations, forensic assessments, counselling, psychological testing and, more recently, a diversion programme for youth sexual offenders.
Dalene Bishop, donor liaison officer at TTBC said, “Our mission is to minimise the secondary harm to children and their families when entering the child protection system by providing expertise, information and support in order to make their journey a healing one. For each Journey to Healing it costs R4 468 per child, which includes a medical examination, forensic assessment, therapy and court preparation.”
“If Armas, Liisa, Deon, Arthur, Myles and Sharlien who are swimming the Midmar Mile for us, can raise R20 000, five abused children will have been healed. A child’s journey to healing begins when they disclose their abuse and they have access to services provided by TTBC.”
The team has urged the community to “Please support our swim to rescue abused children from the deep waters they find themselves in, by enabling The Teddy Bear Clinic to continue providing the specialised support services for victims of abuse.”
If you would like to make a difference to an abused child’s life, please support the team of swimmers with a sponsorship for TTBC by phoning
Dalene on 083 469 9196, email: daleneb@ttbc.org.za alternatively deposit a donation directly into Nedbank account: Teddy Bear Clinic for Abused Children; Account number: 1944183361; Branch code: 194 405; Branch name Parktown and as a reference, please put your name and Midmar.
