One person who gives me hope in SA is: Nicky Kemele

Nicky is one of our 33 amazing foster mothers at Home from Home – an
organisation which sets up and runs supported and supervised community
based foster homes for vulnerable children in the Western Cape. Nicky was
our very first foster mother when we started Home from Home ten years ago
in 2005. Nicky, who was working as a nanny for a family in Fish Hoek,
started volunteering at a children’s home in Khayelitsha where she lives,
in 2003. That¹s where she first found out about becoming a foster mom with
Home from Home.

Nicky says that she was inspired to foster by her own mother back in the Eastern Cape. Her mom had been orphaned at the age of two, and was bought up by other people,
often under very cruel circumstances, and at one stage ended up living outside eating
with the dogs as no one was caring for her properly.

Believing that no child should have to grow up as her mother did, Nicky
wanted to make a difference in the lives not just of children who needed a
loving home, but also to make a difference in her own and her mom’s life.
And she has done just that. Five children who came into her care in 2005
are still with her today, together with another girl who joined their
family in 2010. Nicky loves her foster children just as much as she loves
her own grown up children. Two years ago, Nicky’s mom died, but she was so
proud of what her daughter had achieved; creating a loving family home for
children who have no families of their own.

Though Nicky’s story is a one-off, our other 32 foster mothers all have
their own reasons for taking on this most precious of challenges – caring
for children who are not their own by birth. Sadly, there are many
children in South Africa who need foster care and a place to call home.
Nicky and her sisterhood of foster mothers give us all hope in this
incredible country of ours.

[as shared by Pippa Shaper]

You can learn more about Home from Home by visiting their site over here.

[To read another story of hope involving James Fernie and community development, click here]

Who is someone that YOU think is doing something positive in South Africa that gives you hope. Drop me a line at brettfish@hotmail.com and let’s talk about how you can get their story up here…