1.1 House Parents and Assistants
Each forever home consists of a house mother and an assistant, overseen by a General Manager and a qualified Social Worker. The houseparents have completed a basic child care training program as well on-going training is provided.
These beautiful women raise our children as their own. Some of the children came into our homes with immediate medical and emotional needs. These needs need immediate intervention. Our house parents are involved in the slow process of helping children heal from past trauma, loss of parents, terrible abuse and medical conditions that have gone untreated some for much too long.
1.2 Our children
We have children ranging from babies to teens. Within each forever home, our school aged children are placed in an academic environment that will empower them to reach their full potential. Depending on their unique needs, children may attend up to 5 different schools. Many of our children have medical and special needs that require on-going clinic, hospital and specialist attention.
We encourage our children to participate in extra-curricular activities e.g. sports, hobbies, and youth activities at churches. We try and identify talent and encourage them to pursue their dreams and interests.
We also encourage our children to give back to the community and to also serve in communities in our area. It is important that we teach them not just to receive but also to share in abundance. Ikholwa also donates to local communities any excess donations that cannot be used in our homes.
1.3 Support Staff
In order to provide our children with a typical home environment, it is our strategy to build long term relationships with volunteers and support staff. We value long term relationships for our children as we seek to give them love, security and stability. In this regard our full-time social worker, part time therapists, homework tutors and dedicated volunteers work together to advocate and render support to our children individually, academically, emotionally, spiritually etc.
1.3.1 Driver
It is a logistical challenge to ensure that all the children get to their different schools, treatment facilities etc on time. We have the services of a dedicated driver who also has become a father figure to our children. He provides one more layer of relationships of extended family and consistence for our children.
1.3.2 Gardeners
It is important to us that our children live in a beautiful environment. A beautiful and well maintained garden teaches children about nature and to care for the environment. We get them in once a week.