Free festive food for the homeless

Kopano Manyano Foundation to stay open throughout festive season to provide for needy people

THE KOPANO Manyano Foundation for the Homeless said they would be open throughout the festive season while other NGOs would be closed, which would make homeless people dependent on the foundation for food.

The foundation’s Homelessness and Drug & Substance Abuse Unit programme co-ordinator, Tebogo Mpufane, said they would be feeding homeless people throughout December until early January next year.

For the past two years, Kopano Manyano has not closed for December, and Mpufane said last year for the festive season they had assistance from MMC Sakkie du Plooy. With donations they got from him, they managed to feed the homeless until January.

Mpufane said that on Sunday, they would launch Drive Festive Season for the homeless community, and would be partnering with Pretoria Jewish Progressive Congregation.

“We feed close to 170 or 180 people in Pretoria, and since the Sunnyside murder in Muckleneuk people have opted to come this side. The taxi violence also created xenophobic outbreaks and we always want to spread the awareness that not all homeless people are drug addicts. We have different types of people who end up on the streets,” he said.

Mpufane added that when people did not eat, the crime rate rose. Last year, people were saying the inner city was peaceful and that it was because people had eaten and their stomachs were so full, there was no need for them to go and “hustle”.

“The feeding scheme has always been the vision of Pastor Catherine Mogale, who is the founder of Kopano Manyano, and we’re only the driving force of her vision. When she started this, she used her own money to buy food for people on the streets,” he said.

Unfortunately the showers would be closed during December, however, inner city toilets would remain open.

Mpufane said they were going to approach the municipality and plead that they be kept open for the homeless.

“We’re fortunate that the municipal toilets will be open due to the tourists coming through, but we’ll still have talks with the municipality. It would be better if they allowed homeless people use the toilets so that they also have an appropriate place to relieve themselves,” he said.

It was also helpful that Community and Social Development MCC Du Plooy would be working with the food bank to give food to the homeless during the holidays, he added.