For more than two decades, the Maranatha Siyakatala Child & Youth Care Centre has stood as a beacon of hope for Gqeberha’s most vulnerable — children rescued from neglect and abuse, and adults left without a safety net.
At the heart of this mission is board chair Albie Basson, who, alongside his wife Dr Trudi Basson, has dedicated his life to restoring dignity and opportunity to those in need.
Now, in recognition of his tireless service, Basson has been honoured in the Civil Society category of The Herald Citizens of the Year Awards, supported by Nelson Mandela University.
This is a tribute to a man whose quiet, behind-the-scenes work has transformed countless lives
Together, the couple have paired their skills in grief counselling and construction since taking over management of the nonprofit establishment in 2002.
Basson, 72, smiled from ear-to-ear, saying his nomination alone for the prestigious award had come as a surprise to him despite having been at the forefront of helping the needy in the Bay since 1996.
“I was doing my office work when I received a call from The Herald, congratulating me.
“I was surprised, because there is nothing really glamorous about the work we do.
“Our charity work is not really visible, so it is actually nice to get recognition,” he said.
He said the organisation had two main streams — the Maranatha resident volunteer programme and the Siyakatala Child & Youth Care Centre.
“My wife has a doctorate in social work so she runs the child and youth care centre.
“I focus mostly on the adults.”
The Maranatha resident volunteer programme currently cares for 42 adults who have hit hard times and do not have a support network.
Living by the saying of “give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime”, the adults are accommodated at the centre as resident volunteers where they offer their services in exchange for their boarding.
Basson said this helped protect their dignity.
They also help at various projects as handymen, animal tenderers, nursery workers, gardeners, drivers, cleaners, cooks and in administration within the skills-development projects based at Maranatha’s primary site in Southdene near Forest Hill.
The child and youth care centre is registered with the department of social development and currently accommodates 34 children.
The children, from all over the province, mostly come from home environments where they were neglected and abused.
They are cared for holistically and all their physical, emotional, spiritual and recreational needs are looked after.
The children all attend schools or creches and are given opportunities through sport, music and drama.
Many young people are also assisted post-matric into higher education and training or work opportunities.
“We established a board of trustees, registered it as a nonprofit, and it just grew from there,” Basson said.
“When we started, there were adults at the premises. Now we care for 42 adults and 34 children, 365 days a year.”
Despite their successes, the centre started from humble beginnings
“These buildings were built in 1944 in World War 2 as a military base.,” he said.
“In 1945, it was a hospital, so they are very old.
“When we took over they were very dilapidated, and in 1991, the municipality actually wanted to demolish the buildings.
“During that time, the Maranatha Street Workers [Trust] started doing street work with homeless people and asked to rent the place.
“So we have a special lease agreement with the municipality.
“We maintain the building and invest our money back into it so that our sponsors can see that things are really happening.
“Since 2008, we have spent over R6m upgrading and improving the building. We do the work here ourselves so we save a lot of money.”
Investing in projects that can generate an income in the long-term, the NPO has a free-range poultry egg project which has 300 Rhode Island red chickens and 1,600 broiler chickens.
It also sells lettuce.
“On the children’s side, they are referred to us through the courts. If we have a bed available, the court will place them.”
Basson said to protect the children, they did not take in adults with addiction issues.
“We are a Christian organisation and are fortunate to get external pastors to run Sunday services.”
Basson said he believed there was still room for growth, but that required capital.
He hoped the person who one day took over from him would carry on their same vision.
For any queries or to book a spot at the gala awards, please contact The Herald marketing manager, Berna Ulay-Walters on ulayb@theherald.co.za.
The event sponsors are: Co-title sponsors: Nelson Mandela University; Gold sponsor: Standard Bank; Silver Sponsor: SPAR; Bronze sponsor: Continental Tyre SA; Support partners: Vodacom, Three Peaks Wine and JTC Decor Events, Capsicum Culinary Studio; and venue sponsors: Sun Boardwalk.
The Herald
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