February 23, 2004
By Thomas Thale
COTLANDS, a sanctuary for children facing physical or emotional trauma, received a cash donation of R15 000, 100 food parcels and blankets from Johannesburg's executive mayor, Amos Masondo, last week.
The mayor and senior City officials made the presentation to the Turffontein-based home during the Region 9 leg of a city-wide road show.
Executive director of Cotlands, Jackie Schoeman, expressed gratitude for Masondo's generous gesture, describing it as a wonderful surprise. "We are always grateful for whatever we receive," says Schoeman.
Cotlands has two main units, a sanctuary for healthy children and a hospice for those living with HIV/Aids. The home currently houses 67 children, ranging in age from three weeks to nine years. Over 80 volunteers offer their services to the home on a regular basis, says Schoeman.
Cotlands hospice manager, Stella Dubazana, says there are currently 20 children in the hospice, 42 in the sanctuary and five at the St Mary's orphanage, where they are recuperating from Aids-related complications. "We rely on government grants, local and international funders and donations in kind from members of the public to keep going," says Dubazana.
For the past year, the home has been providing antiretroviral therapy (ART) to HIV positive children under its care, extending their life expectancy. In 2003, says Schoeman, some 60 children from the home died of Aids-related illnesses. "We are hoping that this year we will drastically cut that number with our ART intervention," says Schoeman.
The City has, over the years, extended its services to the home. "City clinics come here to conduct immunisation and they give us free access to medication through the State pharmacy," says Schoeman.
Cotlands also assists some destitute families to care for children admitted to the facility. "Once we admit a child, we adopt the whole family," says Dubazana. "We give poor mothers money to visit their children." The home also helps such families with money to bury their children once they pass away.
Story-telling time
Children who have been abandoned are cared for at the home, when they die their funerals and cremations are undertaken by Cotlands, according to Dubazana.
But for the living, Cotlands continues to provide a home from home.
Permission to use web site material
Publishers may use material from this site free of charge, as long as:
- Credit is given to either the "City of Johannesburg website
(www.joburg.org.za)" or to "Johannesburg News Agency
(www.joburg.org.za)";
- If the article is used online, a link is provided to the original
article on this website;
- The name of the article's author is acknowledged;
-
The webmaster is informed of how and where the material is used (fill
in this brief online form).
Johannesburg News Agency is operated by BIG Media at 011-484-1400 |
