Cape Town - Four non-profit organisations have joined forces to serve the needs of Cape Town's homeless population.
Souper Troopers and Mini Meltdown in collaboration with Community Chest and Ladles of Love will launch the Humanity Hub this week, a service centre supporting and elevating homeless individuals.
The Humanity Hub aims to address the basic needs of homeless people (clothes, food, and toiletries), and in addition provide an array of services in the form of skills training, medical/addiction referrals, family mediation, job preparation, workshops, and micro entrepreneurial opportunities.
Humanity Hub fieldworker Tasneem Hoosain-Fielies said: “We take time to build a relationship of trust with them until they are comfortable to share their pain. This is what sets the Humanity Hub apart – while fieldworkers connected with the City or CCIDs complain that homeless people don’t want their help, we have people queueing to receive our help.”
Lesley and Peter Wagenaar started feeding the homeless opposite their Mouille Point apartment during the hard lockdown but irate individuals disapproving of them doing so, and torched their Mini vehicle.
The incident brought renewed efforts under the banner “Mini Meltdown” to help those in need.
“We are very proud to be collaborating with these amazing partners who share our vision,” said Lesley.
The official launch will consist of the four organisations embarking on a “Humanity Walk” on Friday, a year after the hard lockdown came into effect, and will reflect on where each started.
The walk will begin at the Company’s Gardens at 7.30am, where Souper Trooper began, St Georges Mall where Ladles of Love first served meals, the Community Chest Building and then Mouille Point, the site of the Mini Meltdown.
A fundraising campaign targeting R2 million was also launched to see consistent and expanded services delivered. Donations can be made via the Humanity Hub website.
The hub is currently situated on the ground floor of the Community Chest Building, 82 Bree Street, Cape Town CBD, and is open from 8.30am to 3pm (Mondays and Thursdays by appointment only).
Community Chest spokesperson Desiré Goliath said: “Community Chest is proud to walk alongside our Humanity Hub partners in seeking holistic solutions to complex problems.
“We appreciate and endorse that they firstly, see, hear and listen to homeless individuals and secondly, that their intervention is based on compassion, empowerment and transformation.
“They allow individuals to find their own agency, use their voices and grow into their true human potential as active citizens, which is at the heart of our Community Chest vision,” Goliath said.
Cape Argus