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Celebrating a Year in Pictures!

  

 

 

   

   

Greetings from Seeds of Light!  After my first full year as the director of Seeds of Light, I am pleased to show you many of our accomplishments of the past year in pictures.  I hope you enjoy seeing the beautiful faces of the children and community members that we work with every day here. 

 

It was a busy year getting to know all the various and important projects that Seeds of Light is involved with and has been wonderful to meet all the inspiring leaders, champions, and children from this heart warming area of South Africa. 
In This Issue
Febuary 2015: Highlights from 2014
Ekurhuleni Center gets Government Funding
Art Classes Win Big!
Acornhoek Leaders Doing Great Work
Dignity Dreams - Keeps Girls in School!
SOL Permaculture Gardening Education Enters the Classroom
One Hat One Heart
How to Help
Seeds of Light on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest
Seeds of Light has a beautiful Facebook page and is tweeting away. We'd love to have you be one of our "fans" and follow us on Twitter. Click for FB and then hit the little 'thumbs up' to become a fan. You can also link  to our Twitter and Facebook pages from our web site home page. The power of social media is awesome.   

We have begun updating the Seeds of Light website and hope that you will visit the site to learn more about our projects in greater detail.


 Our deepest and heartfelt thanks to you for your generosity, which enables us to continue our work of uplifting this impoverished community.  We appreciate your support and your love!

 

With love,

 

Wendy Fraser and all of us at

Seeds of Light

 

Ekurhuleni Center Gets Government Funding  
Now Serves Over 200 Children 

Ekurhuleni ("Place of Peace") had a great year, with government funding coming on board. The Center is now able to accept 200 children, and the number of new children is increasing every month! The children at the Center had a fun-filled year. They love receiving healthy food, playing games in a safe environment and receiving love and support from the extraordinary team of caregivers. A few highlights for the children have included an ice-cream party sponsored by CoreLight's Brazilian retreat group, a visit to the Kruger National Safari Park and the Santa's shoebox Christmas party. 

  
 
Seeds of Light's Art Classes Win Big!

SOL's primary school learners received many prizes of art supplies for their arbor day artwork.

The Seeds of Light art students took part in four local art competitions and one international exchange program last year. The artists received multiple awards, prizes and special mentions. Many of the children have never been out of their village, so it was a wonderful opportunity to visit schools further away. The children and learners enjoyed the opportunity to see how their art compared to those of learners from other schools. The art was very well received, and the children were very pleased to take home many prizes.

 

  
       

Pontsho  Matukana from SOL's high school class receiving her award for outstanding performance in the District/ Provincial visual art competition.

Lekina Mashile and the children at the Mathommmayo Drop in Center  

for Orphans and Vulnerable Children

 
Acornhoek Leaders are Doing Great Work in Their Communities
 

Seeds of Light's Acornhoek Leadership Forum (ALF) has just two months left before the 2014 group graduates! It has been a tremendous year for the Forum, with leaders surpassing expectations. Lillian Marule started her own cr�che, Lesedi Day Care Centre, creating not only her own employment but sharing her skills and love with the children of her community.

 

Trygive Nxumalo spread the permaculture message throughout his community and trained four creches, two community projects and countless households how to grow food gardens. He also grew over 3,000 Moringa trees and delivered 105 -- the first phase of his promise to provide Moringa trees to every household in his community!

 

Mickey Theko recruited a team of ten volunteers to develop a food garden in her village, remote Mokhululine, and each team member committed to bring an end to poverty, ill health and malnutrition in their community. 

 

Lekina Mashile started Mathomomayo Drop-In Center for orphans and vulnerable children in Buffelshoek. She is now feeding and giving holiday- and afterschool-support to over 55 children.

 

Several other initiatives are going from strength to strength, and all of our participants report a great deal of satisfaction and increased leadership ability because of this program. Read more about them here. 


Lillian Marule reading to the children at Lesedi Day-care Center
Trygive Nxumalo with children and his moringa trees.

 

Dignity Dreams:
 A New Program that Keeps Girls in School! 

A lack of sanity supplies is a huge issue in rural South Africa. Many of the girls use rags, grasses or toilet paper. This is not reliable, and thus many young girls miss many days of school leading to an increase in school drop out.   

 

Seeds of Light has been addressing this problem by supplying washable and reusable sanitary pads in beautiful packs to the young girls in Acornhoek. Last year we handed out upward of 150 packs to predominantly grade 7 girls and to orphaned and vulnerable children.    

 

This year we hope to expand this program to supply as many grade 7 girls as possible. We will need 500 or more packs to really make a difference. The cost is $14 per pack, which can last a girl up to five years.


To find out more about this initiative visit our website.  

 

 

Seeds of Light's Permaculture Gardening Education Enters the Classroom and Expands to Include More Schools and Community Gardens!

Seeds of Light, together with its partner, AWARD, have expanded our permaculture gardening training to include more schools. Our training has been extended to members of the Acornhoek Leadership Forum, as well to a number of schools, cr�ches and drop-in centers. The number of community gardens has greatly increased. Seeds of Light's field worker, Nick Vorono, has also taken the program into the children's classrooms, teaching the kids how to grow their own plants from the parts of the plants that we normally throw away. The children learned how to grow avocado trees from the seed and potato plants from eyes and how to propagate cuttings. The children are also helping extensively in their school gardens. The hope is that the children will be encouraged to take their learning home to produce their own gardens.

 

  
Leanette Sithole teaching permaculture principals to the Acornhoek leadership forum members and school gardeners.
 
These children are enjoying how to grow trees.
  
One Hat One Heart Extends to the Very Young
and to the Very Old
 

The elderly at two local elder care facilities received hats through Seeds of Light's One Hat One Heart program. Because the elderly in Acornhoek are often marginalized and lonely, they always appreciate a visit, which includes singing and a meal. They were so pleased to receive hats, specially hand-made with love to hold off the cold weather.


 

We also handed out hats to children at the various kindergartens and cr�ches, as well as to all the children at Ekurhuleni Orphan Center. It is always such a thrill to see the children choosing the hat that feels special to them. The choice of colors and styles is always fascinating--they always find one that they like the best.  

 

  

 

"Not all of us can do great things.
But we can do small things with great love."
The children from Ekurhuleni Center for Orphan's and Vulnerable Children enjoy some netball
(basketball) on the court.

 

If you are inspired to fund raise for our work, please let us know and we will help you. We have videos, brochures, stories, everything you need to make it a success. Contact Mona at (505) 424-8844 or write to us at info@seedsoflight.org.  If you'd like to donate today by check or online, click here.  Your donations are fully tax deductible in the USA to the extent allowed by law.

 

Seeds of Light's mission is to assist with the awakening of the Global Heart, which we perceive to be the interconnectedness of all life through tolerance, forgiveness, love and compassion.  Seeds of Light is the humanitarian arm of CoreLight, a spiritual non-profit organization dedicated to inner and outer peace in the world, based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA. Seeds of Light does not impose any spiritual beliefs on the people it supports. 

 

Mail: Seeds of Light, 223 N. Guadalupe #275, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501

Phone: (505) 424-8844  |  Toll free in USA/Canada: (888) 989-3552

Fax: (505) 424-8848  |  Email: info@seedsoflight.org  |  Website: www.seedsoflight.org