Dear Friends of Golden Sunbeams
In the blog on our website, we have already given a voice to several volunteers who completed voluntary work for us. They reported on their experiences in the township kindergartens and their experiences and encounters with nature and the people in South Africa.
You can find their reports here: https://goldensunbeams.org/de/blog/
Today we would like to share the report from Katrina Borowski and Sabine Kestler, who work together as volunteers at the Helderberg Golden Sunbeams’ kindergarten.
As already reported in our newsletter in September 2025, Katrina Borowski (in the background) has been working as a volunteer at the Helderberg Golden Sunbeams kindergarten in Macassar since August 15, 2025. Sabine Kestler (in the foreground) has been supporting us on a voluntary basis since October 6, 2025.
Sabine lives in Germany and will be working as a volunteer at Helderberg Golden Sunbeams until the end of November, after which she will fly back to Germany.
Experiences’ report from Katrina and Sabine
We’ve been working together since October 6th, and it’s always great fun! We get along really well; one look is all it takes, and the other knows…😉
There are days when there’s plenty of free play, and on other days, the children learn a lot about the week’s theme through books, games, and much more. So far, the themes have been insects, under the sea, and birds. There’s a lot of singing and dancing, and the children learn lines and movements through play. And there are days when the children learn very practical things, such as hygiene.
And there are days when the children learn very practical things, such as hygiene…
HYGIENE:
The children were taught the importance of hygiene in a practical and playful way. They helped the teachers to clean their tables and chairs. It was wonderful to see how proud the children were, as they wore aprons and cleaned them.
MOVEMENT CLASS:
On another day, all three classes joined forces and Sabine began the morning with a 5 – 10 minute movement exercise, alongside dancing and singing educational songs. The children participated enthusiastically, and the objective of starting the day with joy and fresh energy through exercise movements and stretches was achieved, which the children greatly enjoyed.
CHEETAH OUTING:
Golden Sunbeams e.V. sponsored a trip to the Cheetah Outreach in Somerset West, and Sabine’s task was to organise the outing, which we as a team, proudly made a reality for the excited and curious minds of the children. It’s such a pity that Sabine got sick and unfortunately couldn’t participate at this lovely event.
The Cheetah Outreach is a conservation programme that aims to raise awareness, to educate and ensure its financial stability. The children were given a guided tour and saw a variety of animals such as Anatolian Shepherd Dogs, Bat-eared Foxes, Black-backed Jackals, Caracals, Cheetahs, Meerkats, Servals and Leopard Tortoises.
The excursion ended with a short snack break and a surprise cheetah toy for the children to remember the great memories they made on this day!
As you can see from the photos, not only the children had an incredible amount of fun on the trip, but also the accompanying supervisors.
At this point, we would like to sincerely thank our two authors! Your dedication and commitment are a very important pillar of Golden Sunbeams’ work and indispensable for many of our projects – thank you very much!
We are always deeply moved when our volunteers leave South Africa after a few months, taking with them the feeling of having had experiences that will have a lasting impact on them, showing that we succeeded in conveying exactly what we live and work for here.
Should you, your children or grandchildren be interested in a volunteer position at Golden Sunbeams e.V. – you can find more information here: https://goldensunbeams.org/de/spenden-mitgliedschaft-ehrenamt/
And finally, our annual SAVE-THE-DATE:
Please note that on Thursday, December 4, 2025, we will be holding our traditional Christmas party in the garden of the Mondeor Restaurant in Somerset West.
For many years now, we have been organising this popular Christmas party for our kindergartens on a rotatonal basis, so that each institution has the opportunity to participate. This year, approximately 60 boys and girls with their teachers from Helderberg Golden Sunbeams and Bridge Park Edu-Care centres in Macassar are looking forward to this special day.
The event starts on Thursday, December 4, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. for the children and at 12:00 p.m. for the adults at Mondeor Restaurant, 22 Mondeor Road, Somerset West 7140 (N2).
We would be delighted to welcome many friends, sponsors and acquaintances to kick off the Christmas season with the children and us! Will you be there? As always, food and drinks will be sponsored by Golden Sunbeams e.V. We would be grateful for any donations to support this, our 2025 Christmas party.
Donation account:
Golden Sunbeams e.V.
Stadt- und Kreissparkasse Darmstadt
IBAN DE54 5085 0150 0023 0186 32
BIC HELADEF1DAS
It would be wonderful if you could spend this colourful day with us, the children, their teachers and our guests.
Until then, we say goodbye and look forward to a large number of attendees.
Best regards
Britta and Claudia