Rainbow House

This afternoon we had the opportunity to visit a place called Rainbow House. It is an orphanage of sorts and is run by a woman named Alison. While growing up in the townships she came to realize that that was not the best place for kids to grow. She was able to get a good education and was able to buy a house in a suburb where she now houses a maximum of 12 kids at one time. She currently has about seven that are permanently with her but the others come in and get some work with social workers and therapists and once they are able to find a more permanent home for them they are sent to live there. If the kids remain at Rainbow House, they are taught how to save money and to give back when they reach 16, they are also provided with a scholarship for university when they pass matric. These kids are given all the tools available to ensure that they succeed in life. While we were there we had some time to play with the kids and some time to talk with Alison. She told us that the housing issue and bad parenting are big issues. There is one girl she told us about who was under the care of her father. Unfortunately they were homeless, but they were offered housing in an affluent neighborhood. This seems nice but in reality the man who offered them the place to live was a registered pedophile. For 22 months this little girl lived with the pedophile, until finally her uncle figured out what was happening and he called social services. We learned that many times people come to South Africa because the police system is so backed up because they are more able to get away with things. They are either short staffed or not required to check up on registered pedophiles randomly to ensure that no more children are being harmed by them. Hearing about this yet again makes me thankful for what I have taken for granted back home. It also makes me so frustrated with the systems in place here that hurt people without meaning to. According to Alison, the government is telling people that places like Rainbow House are unnecessary. Because of this Alison is completely run on private donations rather than government money. She also is forced to turn down countless children every month because she is currently full, as are pretty much all the places like hers.  In truth the opposite of what the government thinks is happening, Cape Town and South Africa need these homes for children who have been abused and neglected. The kids of the townships are in need of love and care. While some get it, some do not. I can only hope that Alison succeeds in her goal of persuading people that Rainbow House matters and that these kids have so much potential to change their world.