Heart FM brings joy to wheat farming town
Bringing cheer to children of Moorreesburg for #16DaysForYouth initiative
MOORREESBURG, home to one of the world’s three wheat museums, is a bustling little town about 90km north of Cape Town.
Driving into the town, one is flanked by captivating views of lush vegetation and livestock grazing on fertile land.
The feeling of freedom is unmistakable and there is an instinctive urge to linger in such vitality, to be reminded of the indestructible force that is nature.
The history of this town dates to the 1800s when it was named after JC le Febre Moorrees, minister of the Swartland congregation of the Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk.
Today it forms part of the Swartland local municipality. Wheat farming provides employment for the larger portion of the population from September until February but leaves a gaping hole in terms of household income out of season.
This does not seem to deter the spirit of the local residents who, regardless of the lack of income, remain highly positive and willing to share the little bit that they have.
The community is a very close-knit one and this allows them to make provision for all residents in one way or another.
The children constitute a vast percentage of the population and it is especially important to ensure that they are groomed and nurtured in spaces where they can thrive physically, spiritually and psychologically.
Dolfyntjies Bewaarskool is an Early Childhood Development Centre that caters to these seemingly basic needs. For a fee of R350, children are cared for and fed balanced meals and snacks for up to 10 hours a day. HIGH NOTE: The children of the wheat farming town of Moorreesburg in the Swartland benefited from a visit by the HeartFM #16DaysForYouth initiative.
They are continuously educated and allowed to learn through play both inside and outside the classroom. With a strong team of 12 qualified staff members as well as four student teachers, the school is wellequipped to accommodate to the needs of the children under their care.
“My vision is for the créche to always be a place where love is, that’s the important thing for these children.
“Everyone who works here must be prepared to love these children like their own”, said school principal Angeline Daniels.
Dolfyntjies Bewaarskool is a product of a partnership of three daycare centres in the area working together as a unit to ensure that they share a space with suitable buildings, sanitation and facilities.
The Department of Social Development proposed this as the solution to the lack of working space as some of the children were being accommodated in a church.
When the church could no longer house them, the municipality was approached and the department provided R90 000 towards the construction of the créche.
However, the town is not without its challenges.
Unemployment has a ripple effect on crime as well as substance abuse.
Teenage pregnancy remains one of the community’s biggest drawbacks, regardless of the presence of a clinic that provides contraceptives and family planning advice.
Mothers often leave their young children to be raised by young grandparents, who in turn have little or no income, and thus rely on the child grant to provide at least some of the basic necessities for the children.
In instances where the parents are seasonally employed, they earn an average of R600 a week which cover the household as well as the children’s needs.
HeartFM, as part of its #16DaysForYouth initiative, paid the school a visit on day-six of the campaign yesterday to assist the centre so it can operate at its optimum.
The day’s activities included painting, cleaning, furniture re-upholstery and the provision of mattresses as the learners were sleeping on the floor during nap time.
They were provided with sports equipment and thousands of locals were fed.