South Africa was never part of my plan. I was very happy with my life in Manchester, but my later-to-be husband wasn’t. He had worked in Africa before meeting me and longed to go back. So, in 1996, I left my job, packed up my belongings, and moved to the other side of the world.

I lived a very comfortable life, enjoying a lifestyle I could never have imagined in the UK.  I was aware of townships/informal settlements but had no interest in or desire to venture into one.  That was until 2015, when my son Matthew had a school project that needed service hours.  A friend suggested that we help at a soup kitchen she helped organise.  Meeting the children and the volunteers was an amazing experience; we kept returning long after the required service hours were completed.

I was always amazed that everyone was warm and welcoming despite their circumstance. Over the years, I heard of almost unbelievable situations that people found themselves in. One such was at a meeting with Nomhle Mbenenge, the Principal of the local primary school, Daluhuble. Although it was summer, we had a cold spell. She told me that sixty children hadn’t come to school because they didn’t have warm clothes. 

Another was from FRANCO’s Nikki de Havilland, who explained that there were drives to help give children school shoes, but the children didn’t have school socks.  The thought of children going to school in a South African winter when it is cold and wet with no socks horrified me.  I decided to try to help collect new school socks.  Six hundred pairs of socks were delivered to Dalubuhle to be distributed to those children in most need.  That small act helped 200 children.

By this time, I was involved in managing the soup kitchen. I would be contacted by tourists who had heard about us on social media. They wanted to bring something on their upcoming visits for the children. Visitors brought art supplies, socks, and vests, and one visitor, Helen Wilde, brought 120 gently loved shoes for the children. All these were given to Daluhuble School for distribution. The joy on people's faces when the items were handed over was amazing but just as important as that, these donations were helping keep children in school.  In my opinion, if ever the cycle of poverty was to be broken it had to be through education, and keeping children in school was part of that.

It struck me that there must be other things that I could get involved with that could help make life a little easier in some small way. So, my involvement with LCC began. 

Thanks to individuals donating money and products LCC was formed in a newly renovated building.  This space, which had for so long been rundown and neglected, was now a bright, dry area where the children could come to the soup kitchen and get their food every Saturday.  The logical next step would be to utilise the building 7 days a week.  Which brings us to the present day.  LCC is embarking on projects that will make a difference in people’s lives.  In addition to the soup kitchen, we have established a pop-up shop where donations are sold at minimal prices so that people can get clothing with dignity.  We have held job interviews and run training programs to train guides to give tours of the area.  We are working with the local community to understand their needs and try to make their suggestions a reality.  We want our space to become part of the community and we need your help to do that.