Sometimes, it’s at the darkest moments, when everything seems bleak, that a glimmer of hope shines through. For the Khumalo family, this came in the form of a hand-up from the Thandanani Children’s Foundation, which invested in their food garden efforts, greatly improving their lives!
Pietermaritzburg, South Africa (04 March 2025) – Five adults and two children living in despair: the Khumalo family in Upper-Noshezi had been struggling to make ends meet or put food on the table.
While they received some state grants, these funds were insufficient to meet all their needs, and the children often went to school without having eaten anything in the morning.
When Thandanani Children’s Foundation members first learned about the family’s challenges, they were moved to make a meaningful contribution to improving their circumstances.
Thandanani Children’s Foundation is dedicated to transforming the lives of children and youth living in adversity.
A team stepped in to help the Khumalos with their efforts to try to grow their own food.
“To improve their situation, the family had attempted to grow their own food, but their food garden did not do well.
“The crops they planted were not suited to the season, and the garden was vulnerable to damage from livestock due to poor fencing,” Thandanani Children’s Foundation said.
As part of the Foundation’s food garden development activities, the family was provided with fencing materials to protect their crops, along with tools for soil preparation, season-appropriate seedlings, and training in basic food garden management.
“The garden was refurbished with durable materials and replanted with appropriate crops.
“Today, the Khumalo family enjoys a thriving garden that provides a steady supply of nutritious food for the entire household year-round.”
Now, the family’s hope for a better tomorrow has been restored, and the two children can look forward to nutritious and hearty meals throughout the day and better concentrate in class.
According to the Foundation, the family is also able to sell the surplus of their produce to generate income for other household needs.
It just goes to show how impactful a hand-up truly is!
“This transformation demonstrates the impact of Thandanani’s interventions aimed at helping families become more self-sufficient by improving their food security and overall material well-being,” Thandanani concluded.
Sources: Thandanani Children’s Foundation
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