The morning starts early around 5 AM with the yelling voices 1 or 2 adults trying to heard 20 tired, hungry, rambunctious boys to get dressed for the day and eat their porridge before the transport to school leaves at 6:30 AM. I don’t have to be accounted for until 9 AM so I cover my eyes with my blanket and put headphones in my ears to muffle the yells, laughter, and clanging dishes. Approximately half of the boys that live here at Khayalethu go to a public school. The other half go to school at the home due to the public school’s waiting lists that don’t seem to have an actual end.
School starts at the home promptly at 8 AM so I am grateful to Micah, Ryan, and Josh who have dedicated their efforts to helping in the school. I like to change up the pace and dabble in a bit of all that is needed so you can find me helping Mama Gene cleaning out closets, sweeping the endless dirt off the tile floors, doing laundry for 29 boys, looking in the boy’s rooms for hidden food, etc. I helped organized medical files one day which made me feel right at home. I tend to jump on the sandwich making wagon with Ariana and Antrew in the Kitchen at some point in the day since there are 87 sandwiches made daily. There is office work to be done as well so I’ve tested my patience with the shredder that will shred for 3 minutes and then shut down for 20….
The boys are done with school at 1 pm here at the home and they are eager to play once they are released. I have to explain why I must continue to work and encourage them to play outside. Sometimes I am lucky enough to sneak away and kick the soccer ball around with one or two before I feel guilty for not helping around the house and find more work to do. The boys that go to public school are picked up at 3 pm and brought back to the house just in time for lunch at 3:30 pm.
Depending on the day there is a different structured activity for the boys but all of them involve going outside to expel their endless supply of energy. Soccer, Karate (you should know that there are national champions within this home, they are absolutely AMAZING), Swimming, etc. Starting at 5 pm some of the boys have homework class where Ariana and Jackie (and me that one time) are there to assist the boys with reading English, spelling, or math.
Shower time is at 6 PM and the boys put on their Superman onsies before supper at 6:30 PM. Yes, even the older ones enjoy their onsies….and I don’t understand how they wear them in this heat. After dinner the boys must do dishes and sweep the floor which staff will redo once they go to bed. Bedtime is at 8 PM for the younger ones and 8:30 or 9 PM for the older ones. Without fail, a few will wander around the home protesting their bedtime. The adult staff stays awake all night to clean and monitor the boys until 5 AM comes back around to do it all again. Khayalethu’s work never ends.
There are 29 boys here total, 20 are between the ages 7-18 and 9 “MEN!” between the ages of 18-21. That is 29 boys worth of laundry. That is 29 boys worth of sandwiches. That is 29 boys worth of entertainment. It is non-stop from 5 AM until whenever they decide to give up for the night (hopefully around 9 PM). The staff is limited at 2 or 3 child care workers for a shift. I don’t know where the staff finds their energy for each day…but it is obvious they find restoration daily and are able to give their all to each of the 29 boys day after day.
These boys aren’t a piece of cake, even though they are so very sweet at times. They come from the streets of South Africa. Some have families…some do not. All have seen hard times and have done or seen hard things in order to survive on the streets. Here at Khayalethu the boys are given a REAL chance to do more than survive. They are given safety; security; 3 meals a day; an education; therapy; they are taught skills such as dance, swimming, and karate; they are even taught to give back through community service and recycling. Once the boys turn 18 and are legally an adult they may choose to stay at the Khayalethu Home and transition to the independent living program where they have the security of a safe place to live, food, and support while they make the transition into adulthood.
This ministry is 100% for their boys. The staff pour their hearts, energy, and wisdom into 29 boys each and everyday in hopes that they can keep just one more child off the streets of South Africa.
Please pray for the boys here. This isn’t a fairy-tale story where they are taken out of bad situations and healed of their hurts without memory. Many boys must go home during holiday when the Khayalethu Home is closed and are faced with the same hard situations that brought them here. The public schools are filled with drugs and gang violence which the boys must face daily and make a choice to stay on the narrow road to success.
Please pray for the staff. Pray for the renewal of energy and strength that can only come from God.
