And so I return...

It's been a while. I must apologise. I could give all the usual excuses of being busy but it would not suffice. While I was away the world still went on, so did urban vision. The June holiday brought with it quite a bit of silence as everyone was away. I went back on a Saturday and found a few new faces, searched for some faces i knew but couldn't find.There of course remained some of the guys I'd known from before.

The winter hasn't been very friendly and I for the life of me can't imagine how they manage. A part of me knows I should let the Holy Spirit disturb my quiet, allow me to think of other ways to help, to be more compassionate but selfishly I don't want that to happen. I want to do the work I'm meant to do on Saturday and then forget the guys for the rest of the week but I know God has other plans.

So I seat and talk. I still feel the language barrier but i plod on. I think I'm here for a reason and while I might not always understand the words they say, I can still read their faces and i think sometimes just seating next to them and trying makes a difference.

Julius came up with a Tuesday programme in which the guys go through a development programme. They learn about writing CVs, how to look for jobs and also acquire skills. I'm all for this. Something, anything to make the situation better. A few respond and that's good. It is slow though and I know that even if we are doing ministry, God's using this whole process to teach us something new, open our hearts to deeper levels of compassion.

I went another Saturday and hang around after Samantha left. I watched them play a game with a dice trying to win away from each other the few coins they'd gathered. I'm torn between discouraging them to do so or just letting them be. I let them be, my warning wouldn't work. Not now anyway. I asked how the game is played instead. Apparently if you roll a 'four' with your dice, you win your opponents money, if you play a 'seven' you lose it again or something like that.
One of the guys offers me a drink. I'm careful not to show any disparaging expressions on my face even if the drink is offered in bottle of 7up or Sprite that had had its top half cut off; they are all watching.

I take a whiff of it. Alcohol. I tsk tsk a bit.

"Its a little too early to drink, don't you think?" I say to my now laughing audience and pass the drink back. Still caught in the dilemma of whether I should begin a talk on the dangers of alcohol. Deciding not to, would it work? I wonder.

I engage myself in a conversation with one of the guys. He knows a lot about God and is actually preaching to me. He suggests that I let him preach one time. I tell him to speak to Julius, making a mental note to talk to Jules about him.

A few minutes later, two of the guys break into a fight. I'm at a loss of what to do. I pray silently. the others try to stop it, to no avail. Slowly the noise reduces but even as I was leaving, the two still squabbled away from the others. I feel useless.


My prayer as I leave is for God to show me how to reach them.

How you can help the Homeless

So many times we run into people who are staying on the street that we would like to help, and many times we have not known where to start. We also realised that there are many other people who face this same sort of challenge. So I've listed a number of available shelters and their contact numbers. If you would like to help someone, these shelters should be a good start. Please take note of the following:

• Most Shelters require that their residents have an I.D. It would be prudent therefore to help the person acquire the I.D.
• It costs about R40 and can be got from the Ministry of Home Affairs.
• The waiting period is about 3 months.

Do let me know if this works out for you or if the person got a place to stay. We aim to regularly update this list so if you find out about others or if any of the numbers do not work please let me know at this Email Address is: antheapaelo@yahoo.com

LIST OF MISSIONS



Name of center Tel No:

Salvation Army -011 832 1227
Foemar -011 683 4687
Ekuthuleni Centre -011 725 6531
Elim Havens- 011 396 2989, 084 731 7754
Dagbraek- 011 964 1039
Fountains -011 892 3599, 011 914 5076/7
Manger Mission -011 967 1011
Maranatha Care Centre -011 965 1708, 083 653 1355
Mother's Nest -011 817 2666
Christian Praise Centre -011 744 4350, 011 744 4383
Angel Wings Care Centre -011 969 5420
New Beginnings -073 288 6152, 073 111 6864
Doxa House Upliftment -Centre 012 328 6107
Fishers of Men -011 811 7952
Survival Centre -078 287 2820
Nazaret Care Centre -084 889 3903

ACCOMMODATION FACILITIES

Benoni Goodwill Centre -011 422 5900
Krugersdorp Fam Care -011 953 1739
Immaculata Hall -011 325 0329
Toevlugsoord -477 1896 4909
Strabane Centre -011 336 2423
The Lord's Place -011402 0104
Jesse Mission -011 642 4422
The Haven -011 763 4423, 011 435 7867
Usindizo -011 334 1143
Hands of Compassion -011 659 0915
Jafta -011 341 0562
Madiba Village -011 334 1828
Nazareth Hse -011 756 1392/1389

WOMEN & CHILDREN ONLY

Rest Haven -011 435 7867
Usindizo -011 334 1143
Botshabelo Women's -011 468 1953
P.O.W.A -011 624 2752, 011 642 4345
Rahab's -011 484 3572
Nisaa Lenasia -011 854 5804/5
Sunrise Care- 011 618 4143
Bethany -011 648 8433
Christian Praise Centre -011 725 5550
Frieda Hartley -011 648 6005
The Lord's Place -011 402 0104
Mercy Haven -011 892 2714

PENSIONERS/STREET KIDS

Jesse Mission 2- 011 614 0897
Soskyn Tehuis -011 402 8152
Harmony -011 402 8121
Mes Aksie -011 725 6531
Akasia -011 642 4429

OTHER ASSISTANCE

Kwasi Sobantu -032 481 5500
Grace Community Centre -011 648 1283
Refugee Ministries Desk -011 333 2537/8/9
The Lord's Place -083 383 6386
Uitkomstehuis -011 648 0400
CMR -011 403 2800/5190
Mes Aksie -011 725 6531
Gordonia (Mental Home) -011 614 9890
Home of Hope -011 331 4466
Ikhaya Le Themba -011 242 3000
Twilight -011 484 1590

OLD AGE

Witwatersrand Home -011 482 2060/1
Fair Haven -011 614 6635/6
Jafta El Kero- 011 725 6741/6302
Savf-Harmoniehof -011 402-8121
Jordan House -011 477 1089/1344

Talent show

Okay so it really wasn't a talent show but we got to dance and got to see who couldn't dance(me) so I guess we could call it that. It was this Saturday. Topic was using our gifts to glorify God. Alfred did the jazzing and the part that really caught me was when he said we can so easily dance at parties, get excited about going places to dance but the excitement kinda fizzles out when it comes to God.

This is part of the UV team; Kgothi, Alfred, Sepati, Julius, Dawn and Ronnie.

I noted a few aha-s from the guys so the message was getting across although the guys were really few today, don't know why, the weather maybe. It was cold and I trusting in a short spot of sunshine did not take a jersey out and chose flip flops instead of a good pair of warm shoes.

Any way this isn't about me. So maybe the weather was the reason the guys weren't here or was it because it was the beginning of the month, maybe they went for money at home.
After Alfred did his part, Riette set the mood for the talent show, nothing like house music to make people forget their reservations.
These are the guys we meet every Saturday, well except for Julius, he's at the back in a grey jumper. He had just been leading their discipleship group.

Stretcher started off with the sort of moves I couldn't hope to imitate unless I wanted to look like...(I have to think of the right word). The next person caught on and the next, each one getting in the middle. Even I danced! If anyone knows me they would find that statement incredible and it was good fun although we almost had to tussle Sepati and Kenneth to dance.

Thinking of tussling, I might have to do that to get Alfred to teach me his getting to the ground trick. I learnt new names from the guys this week, Andrew, Ashley, Malik, Joseph. I have to pray for them. Would you do the same?

The first day

Excitement, mingled with fear played toss in my mind as I walked down the hill from my room to parking lot just behind the McDonalds in Melville. This was where we were meeting the homeless people around the area every Saturday. We, referring to Urban Vision. Its a ministry with a vision of impacting the city by reaching the poor.

The game plan is, we talk to the guys, get to know them, love them, give them food, tell them about Jesus although its a lot more than giving them food. What the ministry seeks to do is to help the guys sustain themselves which involves; teaching them skills, helping them get back to school, find jobs, accommodation, get ids, bank accounts, all the nitty gritty that gets them off the streets and makes them self sustainable with the ultimate goal of letting them know about Jesus.

So anyway, this particular Saturday was first my Saturday to meet any of the guys. As luck would have it, I was the first there. There were a couple of homeless guys seating on the pavements around the place. Doubt began to kick in there and then; "I don't the language, supposing they don't like me, what if I mess it up, wish someone else on the team would show up".

Another voice kicked in though, "you can do it, how hard can it be?, just smile, talk, be interested and listen". So I walked up to one of them. He wore a red shirt, cap and had ear phones, the only thing that let on about his state were the tattered sneakers. I said hi and sat down next to him. I didn't have much to say but I did listen. He's name was Raul Eschel but everyone called him China. It surprised me just how many of the homeless guys have a family with a home.

It was their differences with them that brought them on the street. China for instance had issues with his sister's boyfriend, a criminal lord of sorts. Another guy was ostracised by his family after he went to jail for stealing to provided for them after their parents died. As sad as some of their stories are, lots of them do not have to be on the streets. It has become for them a place of belonging, they call it home. They can deal with the cold nights, stealing, fights they get into, the prejudice we shower on them because they have found something their families haven't given them, a belonging. The only way we can get them to leave the streets is to show them that there is another way.

The others in the team; Alfred, Winston, Julius, Mdu... begin to arrive and more of the guys come around us and we talk for a while. Then its time for food. A lot more guys come. It was pap and vegetable stew. Most of the homeless are guys although two ladies both with babies comes as well. It wasn't a bad day, I think I'm going to enjoy this.