#AmanzimtotiHomless – Homeless but not hopeless
The streets of the coastal town have not been too kind on Wynand, but despite this, he maintains his positive attitude.
A faded black tarp was woven around a tree with crumpled up paper that lined the walkway towards it. An eyesore for most, but a home to those in need. The makeshift shelter is home to a thin figure of a man whose tired eyes tell a sombre story. “Every day is a blessing for me. No matter my situation I remain hopeful and faithful.” These are the woeful words of Wynand Britz, 39, who will spend this chilly winter wrapped up in all three of his clothing items to keep warm while sleeping on the streets of Amanzimtoti. Each day more residents find themselves on the streets with no viable solution. Wynand’s situation is definitely not isolated, however, the father of two hopes to raise awareness by sharing his story.
“Sometimes people make choices that take them on different paths and you can end up falling on your back. I worked on a farm for 22 years, but because of poor choices, I find myself here. I travelled from Pretoria and went on a long journey before arriving in Amanzimtoti,” said Wynand.
The streets of the coastal town have not been too kind on Wynand, but despite this, he maintains his positive attitude.
“People are too judgemental and they apply the same situation to everyone. In truth, God created us all differently and most of us end up in this position without doing drugs or experienced it a long time ago. The sad thing about this town is that there are more older people than younger people on the streets. People often don’t want to help their own races, I sometimes sit at traffic lights and try to sell stuff and I see this way too often.”
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“Every night I see people doing drugs and the area is not safe at all. I’ve been robbed three times since I got here. My bible has been in a bush a few times. It’s difficult in the South Coast because there aren’t many places to help the homeless. Most days I sleep without eating. If I find old or broken items, I try to fix and resell it. I sleep on boxes, but I’m okay. I think the people who went to war had it far worse than me. Now that it is getting colder, I will have to put on everything I have. It’s not nice to sleep on the ground because it’s really cold.”
He believes that if you have nothing you become closer to God.
“You see all the small things he does for you. Getting food is a blessing. Every day is a blessing for me. No matter my situation I remain hopeful and faithful. I believe that there’s always a way to get better. People need to lighten up, this can happen to any of us. It doesn’t matter if you are high and mighty you can lose it all, just as I have. Choices are a major factor in this, however. Not all homeless people are on drugs.”
Wynand was interviewed behind the SUN’s office where he build his shelter, however, he has since moved from the area. He often does odd jobs to sustain himself and hopes to one day change his circumstances.
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