Uviwe offers ray of hope for northern areas
Port Elizabeth’s northern areas are notorious for gang violence and crime, posing a threat to the future of the youth in the community, but for decades the Uviwe Child and Youth Services NPO has been there to shed a glimmer of hope.
Dedicated to equipping marginalised youth with the skills to thrive in the future, the organisation serves the communities through Early Childhood Development centres and youth centres in Gelvandale and Schauderville, teaching and training children from as young as two, and youth and adults up to the age of 25.
“Ultimately we aim to give children — from birth to early adulthood — an opportunity to develop and unlock their full potential.
“We strongly believe that we can help the youth to become active participants in shaping a future where they can thrive,” Uviwe director Anna-Louise Olivier said.
The centre offers preschool services for children up to the age of five, with daily classes from 7am until 4pm.
“We follow a daily programme that includes nutrition, starting with breakfast, toilet training sessions, nap time, educational corners and story time,” the centre’s Glenda Ohlson said.
“Our educational programme is in line with the department of education’s curriculum as we prepare the kids, especially the five-year-olds, to start school.”
The organisation also runs a programme from 2.30pm, providing an educational boost and safe after-school environment for pupils in grades 4 to 7.
Its new holiday programme kicks off on Monday and runs until next Friday.
“We also have a youth club on Friday afternoons where we allow the youth to come in.
“For that programme we target the ages of 12 to 18 because that’s the difficult age, so we do a lot of life skills education with them,” programme and development manager Melissa Els said.
For the older youth aged 18 to 35, the Zilp independent living programme equips unemployed youth with job readiness skills such as CV writing and interview readiness
“We try to partner them with employment agencies so they can get their CVs out there and get into the employment field,” Els said.
Uviwe operates from four centres in Gelvandale and Schauderville, impacting the lives of more than 500 individuals each year.
In the Early Childhood Development programmes alone, the NPO caters for an average of 40 children per centre, Ohlson said.
Uviwe is in need of educational toys, water bottles and lunch boxes for school, party packs, stationery packs, books for the library, board games, DVDs or books for the youth club in Kobus Road and a pool table or games for the youth club in the Gelvandale centre.
“A hamper for a family can be sponsored and given to parents who participated in parent programmes and who have shown an active interest in their child’s development,” Olivier said.
Uviwe also undertakes work with various schools.
Arcadia Primary School principal Russell Emmanuel said: “When we reached out to Uviwe to hear if they could incorporate our school in the various empowerment programmes for the learners at our school, they did so without hesitation, and for that we commend them.
“They are now offering a four-week life skills programme for grade 6 learners.”
Kensington’s Lorinda Grootboom, 25, who completed the six-week Zilp course in 2019, said it had helped her gain full-time employment.
“I’m now employed as a programmes facilitator at the centre,” she said.
“The course helped me with valuable skills like how to handle an interview and identifying strengths and weaknesses.”
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To donate to Uviwe Child and Youth Services, contact Olivier on 082-924-8941 or email director@uviwe.co.za