TOPCO impact to Jorvan Community Outreach
·
TOPCO
has been supporting the education programme of the Jorvan Community Outreach
for 10 years now. The invaluable support has allowed us to increase the
number of learners and students that live at and use the student centre from 10
to 30. The funding is used to assist with the following expenses of the
Outreach:
o
School
uniform
o
Stationery
o
Monthly
food cost
o
Municipality
bills (water, electricity and gas)
o
Medical
bills
o
Transport
costs (fuel, bus/taxi fare) for students
·
Here
follows some of the statistics of the Outreach programme:
o
To
date we have 6 university students who have come through the programme (one of
them has been with the programme since the age of 15)
o
Their
field of studies are : B.Sc Human Life Science ; B.Sc Chemical Science ; B.Sc
Microbiology ; B.A. Journalism ; B.A. Law ; Human Resource Management
o
In
2016 we had our youngest member join the programme at the age of 5. She
started Grade 1 this year and is doing very well.
o
70%
of the group are girls.
o
Many
of the learners from the programme joined the Dare To Stand Out group because
their results were weak or mediocre. We have 100% pass percentage at the
end of each school year and most of the learners receive merit and honours
awards.
o
We
had NO teenage pregnancies within the programme.
o
Brian
has started an exercise routine for all the learners who are at the student centre.
They run, cycle, walk or we have a fun dance sessions with Jordan.
Alternatively we have a physical exercise programme once a week.
o
ALL
of the Jorvanites (the outreach students) are involved in the running of the
Community Outreach Programme. Each Jorvanite is a mentor or tutor.
During the school holidays they will volunteer at a foster care home ; they
volunteer at a local educare centre.
·
Challenges
o
The
cost of university registration fees and additional school fees, places a
strain on the monthly food bill, stationery costs, etc.
o
The
existing student centre is becoming too small to accommodate the learners
living at the centre. There are many more students who would like to move
into the student centre due to social constraints at their homes. We
would therefore like to extend the student centre by adding another floor to
the existing house/building which would cost R550 000 toR600 000.
o
We
require a minibus to transport the learners to and from school and also to
various school workshops. Melanie has to make several trips to and from school
in her car which impacts on her teaching / tutoring time at the Outreach
Student Centre. It also impacts negatively on our monthly fuel cost.
o
It
is becoming increasingly clear that most if not all of the learners who live
with us need some professional psychological counselling. Many of them
have experienced various traumatic events throughout their lives and as they
grow older they struggle to cope with the suppressed emotions. Neither
Brian nor I are equipped to assist the children although we do offer
maternal/paternal support. Often, however, this is not enough but due to
financial constraints the outreach programme cannot afford the counselling
sessions which cost approximately R850.00 per session.
·
Direct quote from beneficiary
o
My
name is Celine and I have been with the Jorvan Community Outreach for 5
years. I started off as a weak student and the education programme has
really helped me grow, not only academically but emotionally as well. I
started living permanently at the outreach centre since 2017 due to the
negative environment at my home. Due to the harsh relationship that I had
with my mother, I fell into a stage of depression and therefore became anorexic
but since living at the Outreach Student Centre I have become healthy again.
The outreach programme really benefits me in the way that there is a continuous
support base system, provides a safe space, a healthy environment, daily meals,
bus fare when needed and toiletries when needed. The continuous help from TOPCO
will really be able to help us as students as we will be able to have our
stationary, books, travel allowances and our daily meals.
o
My
name is Jordan and I’m the biological daughter of Brian and Melanie. Over the
years I’ve seen how the Outreach has grown and how the help it provides to
those going through the programme has evolved. At this point the Outreach is
doing way more than I think we ever could have imagined. It’s seen as a safe
haven by the kids because here they are given the space to flourish whether it
be personally or academically. They are given the resources, the building
blocks, to be the change they wish they could see and living with these kids I
see the growth. Without this programme I could tell you that so many of them
would be lost, falling into the same traps as their guardians/parents had and
so much potential would have been wasted. This magic is of course only possible
with help from the TOPCO. We as a family aren’t by the means to fully
financially support as many kids as we do, but your company allows us to be a
catalyst in their development.
Jorvan Community Outreach
International: +27 83 2720412
Local: 083 2720412
Office: +27 21 3714469
" YOU HAVE NOT LIVED
UNTIL YOU HAVE DONE SOMETHING FOR SOMEONE WHO CAN NEVER REPAY YOU "
