Home Visits part 1

We are in the middle of training with our MoM field reps, which is just a fancy name for the amazing people who daily love and care for the children at Mercy Centers. Today we went out to Zombodze Mercy Center in a community which, much like most of the communities we work in, is plagued by poverty. Our purpose was to do home-visits, another fancy name for the time MoM field reps spend getting to know the children we work with as more than just a number or a face. For our first home visit, we went to the home of woman named Xolile. I think it was the combination of the humble home into which we were welcomed as well as the sight of Xolile sitting on a mat on the floor with the children she cares for that caused each one of us to pause, take it all in, and remember once again what a privilege it is to serve communities, gogos(grandmothers), and children!

Xolile has no children of her own, but cares for the children and grandchildren of her deceased brothers and sisters. One of the girls she cares for, Nokwanda, is sick and requires much care in terms of time as well as finances. Xolile told us how she could not believe it when she was told that Nokwanda’s medical needs would be taken care of completely by the people at the Mercy Center, and not just financially. The teachers and MoM field rep at the Mercy Center all work together to make sure Nokwanda takes her medicine at the right time with the right amount of food. If it wasn’t for the help she is receiving, Xolile doesn’t think Nokwanda would still be alive. She could not stop talking about how she can now ‘rest’ because she knows her children will receive a meal, and more!

She had the children smile so we could see how white their teeth were as she said, “Before the Mercy Center was here, we never brushed our teeth, and now look at our beautiful smiles!” Zethu, another of the children Xolile looks after could not stop smiling as I took pictures of her. Her parents are both alive, but unemployed and unable to provide for Zethu’s basic needs. Xolile took Zethu in when she was just a baby, and has cared for her as her own child since. We prayed with Xolile and the children before we left, once again thankful for the privilege of serving, of being His hands and feet, of being a part of something that is a matter of life and death, something that will last through eternity!