If you haven’t had the chance to learn about our amazing grantee, WhizzKids United (WKU), here is your chance! Check out their latest newsletter with updates about the inspiring work they are doing in Edendale, South Africa. See how WKU uses the power of football to help youth keep themselves healthy and safe from HIV: WKU Newsletter

Check out CTAOP in this month’s Vogue - on stands now!

Whew!  It’s been a pretty long trip and we’ve visited some pretty amazing projects and met some really extraordinary people.  On to our final stop before going home to Los Angeles

From the Southern Drakensberg we travel back towards Edendale and Whizz Kids United, and pass them on the way to Pietermaritzburg.  In a nondescript area of town is the head office of dlalanathi, an organization whose mission is to bring hope and healing to children, their caregivers, families and other caring community members using play for communication in communities affected by HIV, poverty and loss. 

Their focus is on bereavement and loss, and this is very important because the children who have lost one or both parents are much more at risk to contract HIV.  This group is referred to as Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVCs), and are more likely to have low access to health care, education, nutrition, and psychosocial care. They are also more likely to engage in risky sexual behavior, substance abuse, exploitation, social exclusion, child labor, poverty, further exposure to risks than their peers and to die younger.

Dlalanathi targets this group and helps to address these issues through play therapy.  They have a partnership with Uthando Dolls, a doll making organization based in Australia that send dolls (and teach people how to make them) to different places around the world.  My visit fortunately coincided with an Uthando Doll exhibition, and the dolls were set up in a local Pietermaritzburg art gallery for people to come, see, learn about, and support.

(photo thanks to dlalanathi)

Here is a wall full of Uthando Dolls that dlalanathi use for play therapy.

So after a long couple of weeks of traveling around KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, I leave dlalanathi, and fly from Durban via Johannesburg and Paris back to Los Angeles with a renewed sense of excitement for the future.  It is apparent that there is a huge population of South Africans that are dedicating their lives to making sure HIV doesn’t devastate future generations, and we at CTAOP are extremely proud to support them.

A special thanks to everyone I visited on the trip.  Your graciousness and hospitality are second to none.

-Lorrie, CTAOP Head of Programs

Welcome to recap Friday!  This week we have been in the Southern Drakensberg in the deep rural villages around the small town of Underberg, where Family Literacy Project work. We started the week setting the scene and here are some of the pics from the week and more!

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

 A rondavel, up close and personal.  The cement bricks are surrounded by mud, and painted.  The roofs are normally thatched, although some have corrugated metal instead.

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

We stopped to drop off some books and toys at this crèche.  This small building was built because the community had none and one man decided, without resources, to build it himself.  When we stopped in he was all smiles as he stopped packing mud on the inside walls to accept the toys. I was pretty inspired.

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

This woman is reading a section of the newspaper that is designed for the newly literate. All the women in the group look forward to the days when the newspapers are delivered as it is a chance to put their new skills to use.

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

 This women’s group is learning about TB and how to inform and educate their communities. They run through skits and games as well as mentoring.

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

Many of the women are mothers themselves and there were a few young children at the women’s group.

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

Here is one of the smaller libraries that was built by FLP.  It is run by the community and houses books for all ages in both Zulu and English.  Books can be checked out or read there, and it is also used for meetings of all sorts.

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

 These two children are all smiles as they take to the slide in tandem.

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

He did want to smile for the camera, but he loved seeing his picture on the display.

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

The kids playing in the yard were supposed to be in school this day, but the school went on a field trip to the beach and these are some of the children who couldn’t afford to go.  So they came to the library to read and play.

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

This beautiful girl was a huge fan of the swing.

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

 This is one of the home visits.  One of the women from the women’s groups took a tool kit to a home and the kids are encouraged to play and the parents are taught how to allow their young children explore the toys and stimulate cognitive development.  The toys are taken from home to home as there are not enough for everyone to have a kit, but the kids are thrilled when the women come to visit as they know that it’s play time.

For more information on Family Literacy Project, please visit www.familyliteracyproject.co.za.

So it’s almost the end of October and we’ve only got one stop left before returning to Los Angeles.  So join us next week as we travel to Pietermaritzburg and an organization called Dlalanathi.  Have a great weekend everyone!

-Lorrie, CTAOP Head of Programs

The Drakensberg is the largest mountain range in South Africa, reaching altitudes of over 11,000ft (3,400m).  The last town in Southern Drakensburg is Underberg, where we visit a small cottage that serves as a base for an organization called Family Literacy Project (FLP).  Let’s set the stage a bit.  Life has a funny way of keeping things in perspective.  I lived in rural South Africa all of 2011, but when I visited the villages surrounding Underberg, I realized that where I was living was not super rural.  These villages were rural, and people have very little resources. Here is a picture of one of the villages in the Southern Drakensberg.

(photo thanks to Family Literacy Project)

These rondavels are built by hand, starting from the sundried, cement bricks.  This is the most rural place I have visited in South Africa, and this is where Family Literacy Project work. 

Family Literacy Project  started in 2000 to address the low levels of literacy improvement in pre-school children and what role the family could play in building literacy skills.  What they found was that many of the adults were not literate themselves, but wanted to learn.  They currently work in six villages in the Sisonke District and their programs range from literacy groups, community notice boards, community libraries, and book clubs to child-to-child groups, teen sexuality groups, and home visits that teach mothers about early childhood development. I went to an adult literacy group meeting and a home visit as well as visited one of the small community libraries.  Follow us this week on Twitter for the pics and come back for Recap Friday!

-Lorrie, CTAOP Head of Programs

Happy Friday everyone!  We spent this week with Whizz Kids United in Edendale, KwaZulu-Natal.  This amazing organization is revolutionizing the way access to sexual and reproductive health services and education are provided to adolescents through innovative programming and an adolescent focused clinic called a Health Academy, which is located adjacent to the Edendale Hospital.

This is a photo of the Whizz Kids United Health Academy, their first adolescent focused health clinic. (Photo thanks to WKU)

 They have taken an innovative approach to sexual and reproductive health education by moving it from the classroom to the soccer field.  Their facilitators teach HIV education embedded in soccer training curriculum in schools and in the community, as well as on site at the Health Academy.  The end goal is to not only get the kids to be more educated on sexual and reproductive health, but also to encourage them to use the health services at the Health Academy.  Services include HIV counseling and testing, one-on-one Sexual Risk Counseling, couples counseling, ARV treatment and psychosocial support, family planning, management and treatment of STIs, a support program for orphans and vulnerable children, a computer resource center, and recreational and educational programs like arts and crafts, dance, choir, and a homework club.

Here are two WKU staff members debriefing from the previous week and addressing challenges and goals for the week. (photo thanks to WKU)

 And messages that we could use in the US are present on the clinic walls…

Although South Africa has a diabetes rate of 4.5% in comparison to the comparative rate in the US of 10.5%, they have health information on the disease up in the youth focused clinic. (photo thanks to WKU) 

We love this organization because the program is fully integrated into the South African health system.  The Department of Health provides the staffing for the Health Academy, the running costs of the facility, and a bit of research oversight as well.  Aside from the soccer curriculum (called “On The Ball), they also run Mixed Gender Soccer Leagues to promote gender equity and challenge gender roles and stereotypes, a peer education program in schools, and they are currently in the process of developing a youth leadership program called “Gamechangers.”

Here are some of the youth that have come to the Health Academy to access health services, play a little soccer, take part in the homework club, or perhaps get a plate of food. (photo thanks to WKU)

These two girls could be the next “Gamechangers!” (photo thanks to WKU)

This 9 year old receives food at the Health Academy as part of the Orphans and Vulnerable Children Program. (photo thanks to WKU)

He also played a little pick up soccer with the older boys and um….me.  I couldn’t resist and jumped in to play a little bit.  And afterward some of the girls wanted to pose for a picture with me…

So here are the girls posing with their beautiful smiles. (photo thanks to WKU)

Of course the boys were just annoyed that we were on the soccer field, so as soon as the photo was taken, they shooed us off so that they could continue their game.

One of the coolest things about WKU is that if this approach can be proven to work, the Department of Health will look to upscale and roll this model out across the province.  In addition to all of the great programs and the amazing facility, the Health Academy site has been chosen as one of the FIFA Football For Hope Centers and they will be breaking ground on a new soccer field that will serve the greater community and a new building (next to the existing one) that will accompany the field and provide WKU with a little office space.  For more information about WKU, please visit www.whizzkidsunited.org.

Join us next week as we travel a couple hours and a beautiful drive into the Drakensberg, the highest mountain range in South Africa, to a little place called Underberg.

Have a great weekend everyone!

-Lorrie, CTAOP Head of Programs

This time we drive from Mtubatuba  two hours south to Durban (home to the largest Indian population outside of India and yummy bunny chow) and up the N2 another hour to Edendale.  Edendale is located just outside of Pietermaritzburg, in the Umgungundlovu District of KwaZulu-Natal. Here is an exciting organization called Africaid Trust and their Whizz Kids United (WKU) program.  We travel to their Health Academy, an adolescent health clinic located adjacent to the Edendale Hospital.  It is here that they are trying to revolutionize the way adolescents can access sexual and reproductive health services as most of the health system caters to adults and babies.  Check out the Twitter pics during the week or if you’d like to learn more about WKU, join us here on the blog for the Friday recap where we will have all the pictures from the week and more.  See you Friday!

-Lorrie

Hey all!  For those who missed the week of photos, you’ve come to the right place.  And for those who followed the past few days of pictures on Twitter, we’ve got some great additional photos for you!

Please enjoy these photos from the Umkhanyakude District of South Africa…

(photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

This little sign denotes which proud group in the grade 11 class that planted this spinach!

(photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

At Madwaleni, this pretty lady in pink couldn’t be happier about the way the garden has grown!

(photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

These students prepare to take part in the art project to decorate the toilet block at Madwaleni.

(photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

Students in the change room…notice the birds perched on the clothing pegs! So creative.

(photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

At Malabela, an artist painting a local scene!

(photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

Artwork on the wall…perhaps depicting the benefits of running?

(photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

A picture of a giraffe, or indlulamithi (in-dloo-lah-MEE-tee) in Zulu.

(photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

Beni and three men among the artfully done walls of the toilet block. (photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

(photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

I think my fav…a rhino has chased a poacher up a tree! (Photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

(photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

Very creative…this cheetah is actually stepping onto the bench in the change room. (photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

Join us next week as we drive down the coast to Durban and inland to Edendale, just outside of Pietermaritzburg, where we visit with an organization called Whizz Kids United.

Have a great weekend everyone!

-Lorrie

From Soweto we fly to Durban and then drive up to Mtubatuba.  I get nostalgic driving up the N2 towards Mtubatuba and the place I called home for all of 2011.

Here’s the route, and the stars represent the school sites for Home Field Advantage, a joint initiative of CTAOP and Mpilonhle that was completed this past year.

 For those who have not been with us for 2011, Home Field Advantage (HFA) is an initiative that we embarked on two years ago with Mpilonhle, an organization that utilizes mobile health units to provide life-saving health services to rural communities through schools in the Umkhanyakude District.  Four secondary schools were chosen as sites of a clean water source, a soccer field, a toilet block complete with changing rooms and six dry toilets called EnviroLoos, a food garden, and a community laundry facility.  Aside from the positive impact of having these facilities in schools, the sites would also become community hubs of activity that would provide a place for the greater community to access Mpilonhle’s mobile health services.  The groundbreaking ceremony took place during the World Cup in July of 2010 and actual construction started in March of 2011.

The gardens have been a huge success thus far so here’s a little look at Madwaleni’s students helping to prepare a bed outside of the shade cloth.

(photo courtesy of Mpilonhle)

 Like last week, see the pics on Twitter each day of the week and join us back on the blog on Friday for a weekly recap complete with extra pictures from the field.

See you back here soon!

- Lorrie