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LIFE IN THE TOWNSHIP
6:30AM
The streets don’t wake up with sunrise here. They wake up with footsteps.
A young man pulls his jersey tighter. Winter bites. It’s still dark. 6:30AM. Work won’t wait.
His mom walks him to the corner. Torch in one hand. Prayer in the other. "Go and do well, my child." She only turns back once she knows he’s safe.
Then comes the queue. The same queue. The same cold. The same hope.
Hoodies. Beanies. Shivering bodies. Waiting for the taxi that means another day. Another opportunity.
No glamour. Just grit. A mother’s love guiding her child through the darkness.
A young man choosing responsibility over comfort.
A queue that is really faith in tomorrow.
Life in a township. It’s hard. It’s early. It’s cold…
But we still show up. We keep moving forward.
When the Rain Stops, the Real Struggle Starts.
After the major storm last week, we assisted our beneficiaries in the township as they began picking up the pieces. Most people only see the storm itself, but what we witnessed went far beyond rebuilding walls and roofs.
Heartbreaking to see the exhaustion on the faces of parents. The weight of uncertainty. The silent struggles. The quiet panic of trying to stay strong while everything feels like it is falling apart. Many are facing the emotional shock of losing things that already took years to build and replace.
Then there are our teenagers, becoming emergency adults and forced into survival roles, caring for younger siblings while parents search for help. Young people in our townships carry more responsibility than most people realise. Their strength deserves to be seen. Hiding their fear to stay strong, while learning responsibility through crisis.
“The storm didn’t only damage walls. It damaged the little stability families fought so hard to build.”
Thank you to every single person who has donated towards our storm relief efforts.
Thank you for standing with us and our community when it is needed most.
Happy Birthday, Anders Johansson — you are a true changemaker
Instead of unwrapping gifts, you chose to unwrap hope for our community by sharing your celebration and supporting A Reaching Hand. Your generosity is the greatest gift we could have asked for. Thanks to your friends, R38,000 was raised and gifted, which will provide food for eight months for the children at Sinothando Orphanage.
What an incredible way to celebrate a birthday — by changing lives.
Thank you for being a spark for good!
We celebrate the strength of women everywhere.
To the women in our communities who keep going despite the challenges
— we see you, we honour you, and we stand with you.
HELP US KEEP THE POT SIMMERING
WHILE MOST OF US ARE SLEEPING LENIE COOKS
Lenie prepares ingredients the day before, starts cooking at 12am, and wakes again at 3am to check the pots. Slow-cooked, nourishing soup made with loving care.
Lenie’s favourite soup: a hearty vegetable, lentil & bean soup — simple, nutritious, and full of care.
Three times a week, she prepares three large pots. At the Healthcare Clinic she feeds over 300 mouths per day as well as home deliveries to sick and needy elderly in the community. For many, this meal is essential — nobody should have to take their medication without food.
THANK YOU FOR HELPING A Reaching Hand continue this vital work
Even $2 helps provide warm, nutritious meals for people who need food to take their medication.
NURTURING YOUNG MINDS begins with meeting children’s most basic needs — wholesome meals that build strong bodies and prepared, eager minds.
WITH YOUR SUPPORT, THIS BECOMES POSSIBLE
By sponsoring a child’s daily nutritious meals, you help lay the groundwork FOR A BRIGHTER, MORE HOPEFUL FUTURE
It is a small act with a lasting impact.
You may choose to donate for one month or commit to a monthly contribution www.areachinghand.org/donate
Thank you for helping us care for our children and their future
#NurturingYoungMinds #areachinghandnpo
December 2025
🌼 Welcoming Andisa to the ARH Team
We’re delighted to welcome Andisa, who joins A Reaching Hand to work at grassroots level in the township, supporting our beneficiaries hands-on. Andisa brings not only a deep understanding of the communities we serve, but also an impressive set of skills and an incredible spirit.
We’re equally proud to share that her son, Kwanele, has just completed his Diploma in Building — a true reflection of perseverance and growth. In his own words:
“With my Diploma in Building, I qualify for a Junior Quantity Surveyor & Construction Manager position, but later on I’m planning to do an Advanced Diploma majoring in Quantity Surveying.”
Kwanele’s determination and clear vision for his future remind us why we do what we do — creating opportunities that empower young people to build meaningful, sustainable careers.
Instead of gifts for his 75th Birthday Celebration, Pascal in Amsterdam, asked his family and friends to donate to A Reaching Hand.
A heartfelt thank you to you Pascal, and your loved ones — your generosity brings hope and change to many lives.
August 2025
FUNDRAISING EVENT IN COPENHAGEN DENMARK ON 1 JULY 2023
August 11, 2023
And once again in a flash we are in the middle of August. It’s been a busy but FUN year for us. In March we started working on our Fundraiser Event set to be in Copenhagen Denmark on 1 June 2023. A lot of planning and meetings went into this. The logistics were crazy. Bev and the sewing ladies put together a beautiful merchandise range which we got into 2 suitcases and lugged all the way. It was so worth it and was a hit. The sewing merchandise is a big part of our fundraising at A Reaching Hand and also helps to support the women and their families.
The Fundraiser was a great success!!! The event was held at The Eatery and their team really made the evening special. It started with a welcome from Karin and then handed over to a well known local celebrity Peter Taniv to host the evening further as well as act as auctioneer, together with Hans Svensson. They made an excellent team and the beautiful sponsored items brought in the bulk of the fundraising. We are so grateful to the sponsors!
We were also very excited to see some of our sponsors from Sweden. A few was at the event and we had an opportunity to meet up with some of the others. It was wonderful!
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all who attended the fundraising dinner to help us sustain our community work in Cape Town. Also to those who could not make it, and still donated. Your support was instrumental in making the event a huge success but your presence made the event more special, and we were honoured to have you there.
We raised a total of 69 300 DKK / 10 232 US Dollars!!
THANK YOU so much for your support.
UBUNTU IN 2023
February 10, 2023
What is Ubuntu in South Africa?
Ubuntu is a capacity in South African culture that expresses compassion, reciprocity, dignity, harmony and humanity in the interests of building and maintaining a community with justice and mutual caring.
Can you believe in a flash we are already in the middle of February. So much have happened since I’ve last been here.
The big sanitary pad hand out to young girls, mothers and aunties in the township. Your donations helped us provide over 100 girls and caregivers with reusable sanitary pad kits to last them for up to 5 years. A real life changer. What a huge difference you are making in their lives. This is big for them! THANK YOU!
Then there was the end of year gift for the little ones and the new year celebrations. Seeing the joy on their faces is a gift to us. The getting them back to school with the stationery and school uniform sponsorships. Thank you so much to all who have contributed!!! We acknowledge that we certainly cannot do this without out! THANK YOU!
As mentioned in our end-of-year newsletter, our focus for 2023 (while keeping our attention on the sustainable running of all our projects) we will this year have a big focus on our “Keeping A Girl Child in School” campaign, as well as energy saving and solar solution plans to help families keep the power on.
THANK YOU TO OUR SUPPORTERS, because it is YOU and YOUR continued support and understanding of the critical role we play, that keeps our team grounded, grateful and hopeful.
May this new year bring you more hope, more peace, more joy, more love and a whole lot of UBUNTU xxx
A drop of rain is insignificant, but together we can make a river.