Our 2016 Story

We started 2016 with a very successful, two-day March Fashion Exchange held at the beautiful Lovemore family home, and raised over R35 000. Then followed an invitation to the Ngoya Lodge Market Day at Mtunzini where we had excellent sales of almost R14 000 and in addition, met prospective garment donors & had requests for ECD assistance. Our Jumble projects are ongoing and in 2016, raised a steady stream of much-needed funds, totalling close to R5 500. In July the team hosted an experimental Bridge Drive where garment donations formed part of the entry fee. The morning event boosted our funds by R4 000 and might become a regular feature on a larger scale. A High Tea event was held on 4 August for 100 ladies. We introduced a new group of women not only to Chic Mamas, but also to the endearing children of Umzamo Crèche, who sang for our guests. This special day raised R28 000. On November 2 & 3 a well-supported Fashion Exchange was held at Westville Boys’ High School and this final fundraiser brought in R31 000. Funding Singakwenza Waste2Toys Workshops for teachers and home-based carers continued to be our most effective means of impacting the greatest number of pre-schoolers. Four workshops funded at R2 000 each, were carried out in rural areas in 2016. Upgrading Umzamo Child Care Centre was our main project for the year. Based in a severely impoverished informal settlement, the upgrade began in the last quarter of 2015. Since then, we have relocated Umzamo from a hazardous wood & iron structure that flooded with every storm, to a new site where pupil numbers have quadrupled and 2 assistants were employed. In 2016, 25 children aged 2–5yrs started real pre-school in a refurbed park home and are thriving. In addition, 10 babies aged 3 – 24mths are now safely housed in a log cabin next to the pre-school. The entire centre is securely fenced providing a safe playground for the children. We were able to install a water harvesting system that supplies water for consumption and for 2 flushing loos as a welcome alternative to the communal ablutions and water points used by the 2000 residents. The final addition was two aluminium awnings that provide sheltered outdoor play areas. The completed upgrade totalling R230 000, included R160 000 raised purely from garment sales!!! 2016 saw a team decision to cover formal pre-primary teacher training fees for Nomusa Dlungwana who heads up Umzamo. She attended Caversham Institute throughout the year and we stand amazed at her passion to make a difference and apply all she learns. Her personal growth and the transformation in the children is a delight to see A glowing year-end report from Caversham Training Institute has fully justified our ongoing investment in this special woman’s tuition. 2017 is brim-full of fun and exciting opportunities, including a brand new crèche installation for House of Hope in Clermont. We are sincerely grateful for all the support and encouragement that made 2016 amazing. Thank you! The Durban Chic Mamas Do Care Team