This month, Christine and Manuel travelled to South Africa on an important business trip. Whilst there, we also embraced the opportunity to visit our friends at Bethany Home, a Johannesburg-based care organisation.

Bethany Home, which was started in 1989, is a specialist home offering much-needed support to several abused women and their children. The home’s mission is to rehabilitate vulnerable people who are sent there from police stations and hospitals across South Africa and further afield, including via word of mouth recommendations and direct contact made using their website.

During our time there, we donated clothes and paid the home a visit to offer our support.

The majority of women and children who arrive at Bethany Home will own very little. This is why we decided to focus predominantly on clothes when making our donations.

Most of these women have suffered extreme abuse and hardship over the years, which may have been physical, emotional or otherwise. Nevertheless, Bethany Home provides them with much needed refuge and support regardless of their circumstances and background.

In recent weeks, the organisation has enjoyed some fantastic successes in terms of creating new opportunities and opening new doors for its residents.

One of Bethany Home’s ladies, Thembeka, has been offered a bursary to study a Business Communications Degree following a string of near 100 per cent scores in her recent exams, while another has just started a nursing course.

Meanwhile, three ladies have recently moved out of the home to pursue new careers at local schools, restaurants and more.

Upon returning from our visit on Friday 14 September 2018, we received a beautiful letter from Bridget Edwards, the Manager at Bethany Home, thanking us for our “magnificent donation.”

“Your continued encouragement, love, care and amazing support is appreciated greatly,” she said.

Commenting on our visit, Christine said: “It is always a heart-warming experience to sit down and speak with some of these women at Bethany Home, who despite having lived through extreme hardship, have managed to find the courage to begin piecing their lives back together thanks to the organisation’s support.”

Manuel added: “Visiting Bethany Home is always an unforgettable, life-affirming experience and this visit was no exception. We are delighted to make these donations and we just wish we were able to help out more.”

A copy of Bridget Edwards’ thank you letter to Systematics can be accessed via our website here.