I have some wonderful news! You will remember that in our previous newsletter we had asked for some special financial assistance to get the roof repaired of the “Share tears and grow” safehouse for abandoned and abused children here in Nelmapius? We had some wonderful help from a few overseas supporters and together with the local gifts we surpassed our target this week!! What a great Christmas gift!! Many thanks to all of you who gave a helping hand and a special word of thanks to Hart voor Kinderen in the Netherlands. We are hopeful that the work on the roof will start soon. We will keep you informed!

We also had such a remarkable experience a few weeks ago when we were visiting friends in Clarens. We were privileged to watch the Midlands Chamber Choir giving a performance of Handel’s Messiah.

The public watched in awe throughout the excellent performance. I must also say that the acoustics inside the little church in Clarens were very good. No need for any sound installation. It was an amazing performance, and the choir received a long and loud applause when the last “Hallelujah” was sung. 

The director then asked the public in the church if anyone had ever sung the “Hallelujah” (from Handel). What happened next was really something out of this world.  The choir divided itself up and went in between the public, as per alt, soprano and tenor and everyone then sang along. Watch the video below.

As we all sang the “Hallelujah” (Praise the Lord) together, we all felt the Spirit of God really coming down on us. Towards the end I could not sing anymore, because of the lump in my throat. I saw people with tears in their eyes and I am sure many felt the shivers along their spines, as I did. It was an unforgettable experience. So beautiful.

Jesus: our Wonderful Councilor, our Strong God, our Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6).

Psalm 22:3 mentions that God actually lives and dwells in our praises. This is the mystery and the miracle of the breakthrough power and presence of God when we worship! When we worship, we affirm the truth of God’s Word, and it is being rooted deep in our hearts. Praise causes the presence of the Lord to come into our midst. When we praise, God comes in and leads us forth…our spirits are raised and our faith and trust increase.

Christ came into the world to bring us peace, no matter what the circumstance or chaos around us. Let us all celebrate Christmas again!

Wishing you a blessed Christmas and God’s richest for the year ahead! Please drive carefully and stay safe.

Henry and Annette

How time is flying. It seems to me that the older you get, the quicker the time goes. 2022 has come and is already almost gone! I cannot believe that it is almost Christmas time again. On behalf of all the children, we want to thank Hart voor Kinderen (NL) and all our donors and supporters here who have made it possible to continue helping the homes that we have committed to. Amidst the adversity, that is a miracle on its own. I do want to draw your attention to one of the homes, namely the safe home “Share tears and grow” in Nellmapius, where the roof is in desperate need of repairs. It is leaking at several places and there is no ceiling; that makes it warmer on hot days and very cold on cool days. See pictures below.

We have a first quote which is R15000 for the repairs of the roof and R22000 to fit an Isolite ceiling. We are proposing that we take this on as a project for 2023. Can we count on your support? When you make an extra donation for this, please mention the word ‘roof’ so we can allocate your donation to this project. Many thanks for any amount you can give!! To make a donation now, click on this link: DONATE | Heart for Children

CRYSTAL CATHEDRAL MINISTRIES SA

 CCMSA | Bread on the water

By e-mail, I received this message from Robert Anthony Schuller who was one of the founding board members of Crystal Cathedral Ministries SA (CCMSA | Bread on the water). To read the message, please click on the link below:

Join us in our Fight for Truth | Bread on the water

PLEASE NOTE THAT DUE TO LOADSHEDDING & OTHER FACTORS WE ARE EXPERIENCING TECHNICAL PROBLEMS IN PUTTING NEW VIDEOS ON THE INTERNET. WE MAY HAVE TO ACQUIRE SOME NEW EQUIPMENT FOR WHICH WE NEED EXTRA FINANCES. WE ASK FOR YOUR PATIENCE WHILST WE ARE TRYING TO FIND SOLUTIONS FOR THESE PROBLEMS. THANKS FOR UNDERSTANDING.

Donating to CCMSA | Bread on the water

It is almost Spring and it has become our tradition at this time of new beginnings to make an effort to get some extra income for Heart for Children. We still think that a calendar is an ideal small present to give away to your loved ones with Christmas or New Year. We have two types this year, it is African Wildlife (see Picture above) or Scenic South Africa (see pictures below). 

Format: A5. It is a desktop calendar with a triangular fit. 
Size Closed: 200mm x 145mm
Size Open: 200mm x 145mm
Binding: Wire Bound

As usual, it is for 12 months, with 13 different pictures

Please let us know if you are interested in buying? We ask for a donation of R120 per calendar. Please state clearly which calendar you would like. Proceeds of the sale go to the children in need, To see our beneficiaries click here: https://heartforchildren.co.za/our-beneficiaries/

We have a few volunteers who have offered to give their time for free to make greeting cards (Christmas, Birthday, Anniversaries, special Holidays, etc.) and shopping bags.  For examples of the work: See pictures above and below. All proceeds of the sale thereof will be for the benefit of the children in the homes that receive aid from Heart for Children. In order to prevent waste, they will rather work on your specific order. Please contact Annette at 0834696875 or annette.pool@gmail.com 

We have asked our beneficiaries if perhaps they could give us some feedback about some of the children that were placed in their care and that in the meantime have left the nest, so to speak. We received our first feedback from Alfonse and Yvonne van Galen from the Rehoboth Children’s Village in Port Shepstone.

Yvonne writes:

Hi Henry and Annette,

We have several children who are now independent. Heart for Children houses have sheltered young kids until now and those who are independent had just flown out when Heart for Children also started supporting the city house. But we can give an update on a few kids. Some have chosen to have little to no contact with us, others keep us informed monthly.

2 young ladies now work regularly at Rehoboth, one as caregiver to the babies and one with woodwork restoration (see photo at the begin of this newsletter). Another young man now works on a nearby estate. These ladies rent a room next to each other in Murchison and the young man lives with an uncle. He is now training hard to run the Comrades in August. (See photos below) 

Our first child from Rehoboth is also renting a room and after Barista training, he worked in a restaurant for a while. Now that the high season has ended, he is working at a large macadamia farmer where he has learned about the nut cracking machines and is involved with supervision.

Furthermore:

One lady works in a law firm and studies in the evenings to continue with law. Another young lady is now doing 2nd year patisserie training after 1 year chef training in Johannesburg. After her education is finished, she hopes to go abroad which has always been her dream. Another young lady has part time cleaning work. She is our first lady who is pregnant and expecting her child in September. Unfortunately the father is not willing to be part of the upbringing.

Another young man has been working at KFC for years now and rents a room and rides a bike to work every day.

I have a few photos of those who found work. See attached.

Blessings

Yvonne

(Yvonne and Alfonse are in the picture at the end far below).

Many thanks for your ongoing support to Heart for Children!!!

Annette, 0834696875, annette.pool@gmail.com

and 

Henry, 0836297690, henrypool7@gmail.com