As Women's Month comes to an end, the IOL ‘’Elevate HER’’ campaign has left an indelible mark on the lives of those it aimed to help and on our journalists and staff around the country.
Launched to raise awareness and provide aid to homeless women, the campaign has fostered a sense of community which has inspired collective action.
The campaign has enabled IOL and trusted organisations and people across the country, including U-Turn to donate essential resources such as dignity packs that include toiletries, sanitary towels and underwear to homeless women.
But its impact has extended far beyond material support. It has offered these women a sense of belonging and empowerment, reminding them that they too, matter, and that they too, are seen.
This campaign sought to raise awareness about the struggles faced by homeless women, reduce the stigma often associated with homelessness and promoted empathy while inspiring others to volunteer and advocate for making a difference.
Through a series of stories produced by IOL reporters from three of the country’s large metros, IOL has managed to share these women’s stories from Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban.
Some of these stories come from women who receive help from the Holy Trinity Catholic church based in Johannesburg, Braamfontein. The Church has a group called Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, named after a French priest who was known for his charity and compassion for the poor in Paris.
They provide help with meals cooked from the church's kitchen on a weekly basis and toiletries on a monthly basis.
The organisation also works with medicine students from the University of the Witwatersrand to provide the homeless women with medical check-ups. To oversee the proceedings and make sure all goes well is Bertin Zinsou who is the chairperson, John Stiekema, who is the treasurer, Abuyile who is the cook, Jeffrey Hoosein and Samantha Reddy, who are both volunteers.
Helping with mental wellbeing is counselling psychologist Boledi Tladi. She runs a non-profit organisation (NPO) project called the Green Bag Project. They started with just handing out toiletries in green bags to the unhoused communities in the streets.
The project started in January 2019 with just toiletry handouts. As time went on they got a sense of what their other needs are.
They realised that the help they receive is often in the form of helping them with jobs and shelter. The Green Bag Project wanted to provide a space for them to share, offload and unload as well as have access to information about mental health.
“As we spent time with these communities, one thing they always expressed was that they don’t get a place to just talk, reflect and share stories about their lives or have a safe space to meet other people,” Tladi shared.
She said they often share how on the streets it can be hard for them to know who to trust. They have workshops in the form of music, art and group sharing.
Their workshops provide a space for them to share stories and for them to see other people who have similar intentions for healing, self development and wanting to learn more about themselves.