In spirit of the coming Christmas season, we know that many of our supporters will be eager to help someone in need. This in particular is the time of year where we all count our blessings and do what we can to enrich the lives of those in material need.  Below is a list of specific needs and special gifts that we'd love to provide for our clients this year. Contact Emily if you'd like to give!

Donations in Kind

• Put together a love pack for one or more of our clients
• Donate school stationary for the upcoming school year
• Donate uniforms for the upcoming school year (trousers, shorts, jerseys in generic colors such as grey, navy, or black. white shirts)
• Donate food packs for the many families in need

Monetary Donations

• R500.00 will sponsor a School Start-Up Pack for one child (stationary, uniform, school deposit)
• R100.00 will sponsor a Christmas gift for a child in our Bridging School
• R100.00 will sponsor a Christmas gift for a woman in our support group
• R200-300 will sponsor a Pick 'n Pay voucher for a family in great financial need

Adonis Musati 2010 Update from Anna Telford on Vimeo.

Last month, Tafadzwa and Carmelle, two youth involved with the Adonis Musati Project (one of whom is part of our ILP Programme), went to Wilderness to attend a Project Colors Youth Mentorship Programme. Sunyata Choice is the founder and director of the programme, which is an experiential youth leadership programme that helps participants build CVs, learn new skills, volunteer, and learn how to make a difference in their communities. Over the course of the 10 day workshop, Tafadzwa and Carmelle gained direct community development experience, learning from local women who have started their own community projects. The two were then required to design their own community project, thinking outside the box to come up with new solutions to community issues. Tafadzwa designed his project to help street youth and Carmelle designed hers to assist the asylum seekers and refugees.

Last year we decided to start a support group for single refugee and asylum seeker mothers who were struggling with illness and unemployment. With the number of women coming to our offices seeking help, we saw a great need for support for these women. The project was well received by the participants and this year we were able to expand on this project and develop it further with the support of two UCT Social Work Students who ran a 9 week programme as part of their community coursework. During the course of the 9 weeks the support group participants engaged in different topics which included introductions and expectations of the group and learning about one another and the different backgrounds the women were coming from. They went on to learn about stress and depression, domestic abuse, coping skills, health and well-being, and creative skills. We were also fortunate enough to have Sunyata Choice, from Project Colors, come and do a mosaic workshop with the women.

AMP has always to some degree or other been involved with the foreign people who live under the Culemborg and Kavukiland Bridges.  In the past we have provided food, clothing and even CV services to the people living there.  As word about AMP’s services got out, there has been a flow of clients from there coming directly to us at our offices.

The following thank you letter was written by a client we assisted through our Refugee Outreach Programme. It is responses like this that motivate and encourage us to continue the work we are doing with asylum seekers and refugees!

"Please allow me the opportunity to express profound gratitude for the assistance and support extended to me in particular and other refugees in general. Indeed your noble and erstwhile organisation does offer invaluable service that restores confidence, self-esteem and a determined approach to life through the material and psychological support offered. Depression which could have resulted in numerous refugee suicides is thus curtailed.

As an educator who realises and laments the advancing chronological age of school going children, I applaud and salute your initiation to assist this group of individuals through assisting them to access education. Successful completion of the education programs will positively reward you and bring smiles of hope to an otherwise lost generation. Your selfless dedication to service will help these youth realise their educational aspirations.