Dear Friends of Golden Sunbeams,
Winter has arrived here at the Cape – quiet, wet, and clearly noticeable. Since the official start of winter on June 21st, temperatures have cooled considerably. Rain clouds have been drifting across the country in recent weeks, and the wind carries with it the clear, fresh air of the south.
In recent weeks, the long-awaited rain has finally nourished the dry earth and ensured that the dams are slowly filling again – a blessing for both people and nature.
Even though we haven’t yet reached 100% dam capacity, we are still above last year’s level, and we are only at the beginning of the cold, wet season. The average dam level in Cape Town on July 11, 2025, was 81.3%.
Photo of the Wemmershoek Dam near Cape Town (dam level on July 14, 2025 was 84,0%).
But, as is so often the case in life, this blessing from nature also has a downside. What is a joy for some brings great challenges for many people in the townships. The heavy rains have flooded streets, exacerbating already difficult living conditions. Many drains to the sewer system are completely blocked or so blocked that the water can no longer drain properly. It collects on the streets, making them impassable in some places. Since some of the roads in the townships have very large potholes that are not visible when the streets turn into small rivers, it is dangerous to drive there during this time.
Since the rainwater can’t drain away, it stagnates – and then makes its way into the houses, which become damp from below and sometimes completely flooded. The cold, wet days and nights are not only unpleasant for people and animals, but also represent a serious strain – both physically and psychologically.
After quite a bit of rain fell during the night of June 25th to 26th, we contacted our ECD centres early in the morning. We were very pleased that most of them gave us positive feedback. We were very happy that the roof at our Helderberg Golden Sunbeams crechè in Macassar is finally watertight. We had been trying for many years to seal the weak points, and now, after re-roofing a large section of the roof in April, it really looks as if we’ve succeeded. There was no water damage there, even after this heavy rain!
So we finally dared to install a new interior ceiling and paint it.
Only two of our kindergartens asked us for help after the heavy rains. Lekkerbekkies Edu-Care Center and Loflands Day-Care Center, both in the Rusthof area, reported major water damage.
At Lekkerbekkies, the entire passageway, which is equipped with artificial lawn, had become wet because the drain was clogged. In addition, the amount of rain completely overwhelmed the capacity of the gutter. For these reasons, we had a second gutter installed on the roof and a new drain.
Additionally, it started raining again into the Lekkerbekkies kitchen, which is located in the old kindergarten building. We’ve resealed the leaky side of the building and hope that we’ve finally sealed the kitchen.
When June, the principal of Loflands Day-Care, showed us the water damage, it quickly became clear that more action was needed.
From the storage room, which has water damage in several places due to a leaky roof, to the numerous leaks in the roof of the main house, where the kitchen is located. Here, the rain had come in so heavily that the interior ceiling had come loose.
Unfortunately, the list of necessary work our construction manager gave June was quite long. And since we were already at it, we added another request from June to the list. She asked us to expand the covered play area for the children with an extended shade roof to make the play area usable even in the rain.
While the rain drums gently on the metal roofs and the cold wind whistles through the alleys of the townships, the schoolchildren are on three weeks of winter break. What sounds like relaxation and security to some often means emptiness and deprivation for many children in the townships. Without attending school every day, they often miss out on their only hot meal of the day. Instead of learning, playing, and socialising at school, boredom, hunger, and the feeling of constantly being cold often reign at home.
For this reason, we took advantage of the holiday season to meet up with some of our sponsored children in the Somerset West Mall. After a hearty lunch, we then bought lots of lovely warm children’s clothes to keep the children from getting cold in the winter.
At least on this one day, we can ensure, with joy, warmth, and lots of heart, that the time isn’t marked by hunger and loneliness, but rather by community, care, and small moments of happiness. And the days leading up to our meeting will be filled with anticipation, and in the days following our meeting, we’ll be left with not only the many lovely warm jackets, sweaters, tracksuits, and winter boots, but also the wonderful memories of our time together.
Some of our first sponsored children already have children of their own, whom we’ve supported since they were babies. And they’ve outgrown kindergarten and are now attending the primary school.
Amala, with her foster mother Alice, has known Britta since their time working for Hope & Light in Sir Lowry’s Pass. At that time, Osvin Nöller was already Amala’s sponsor and supporter, who was still a little kindergarten girl at the time. When Alice and her family left the Hope & Light children’s village, she took her foster children with and gave them a new home. Since then, Golden Sunbeams, together with her sponsor, has supported her education. Today, she is a confident young girl who will graduate from high school at the end of next year.
During our winter shopping trip together, Amala talked about her successful and less successful school subjects and how much she is looking forward to the matric party next year.
We extend our heartfelt thanks to our sponsors for their regular support of their little and ever-growing protégés. And we thank all our members and sponsors, whose commitment makes these wonderful projects possible in the first place. Every donation—no matter how small—can bring hope and joy to a child. Because hope begins when people don’t look away.
Best wishes
Yours, Britta and Claudia