No.3 Kotze Street, The Shelter

500 blankets were donated to The Shelter on No. 3 Kotze Street near Hillbrow during one of the coolest nights in June 2015.

- by Po-Chuan You -

Photo by: Ken Tsai

 



Tzu Chi volunteers explain that the blankets
are made from recycled plastic bottles
(Photo by: Ken Tsai)

The mercury on the thermometer indicating just below 3 degrees tonight; it has been described as the coolest night in June, 2015. The time is 18h00, with heavy traffic rushing out of Johannesburg CBD, away from the hot crime zone. On the contrary, a white mini van is taking the complete opposite direction, carrying with it a group of Tzu Chi volunteers heading straight into Hillbrow towards a shelter on No.3 Kotze Street.

No.3 Kotze Shelter ("The Shelter") is a governmental facility, under the Department of Human Development, where adult vagrancies can apply for  temporary residence through a verification process; they are offered an overnight stay with a bed, hot shower, laundry and dinner for R8/night. The vagrancies are required to leave the facility the next morning at 07h00 and only return with R8 and their positive identification after 17h00.



Mattresses and beds, funded by
the government, are provided by the facility
(Photo by: Ken Tsai)

However, insufficient budgeting and funding has resulted in a lack of resources, such as mattresses and blankets, a few essentials for such cold nights. The director, Mr. Alan Grobbler, has hence reached out to Tzu Chi, requesting for assistance of 500 blankets to support the residents in The Shelter in preparation for the approaching freezing winter.

Despite the winter temperature chiseling into the Tzu Chi volunteers' bones, they were happy to receive the warm welcome at the common area by more than 150 residents. Many of them shouted out "Tzu Chi" upon first glance, recognizing the characteristic blue top and white jeans uniform. This is due to the fact that Tzu Chi has been working with City of Johannesburg dating back as early as 2002, with its division of Emergency Mangement Services (EMS) as well as Social Developments. 



Mr. Alan Grobbler explains the
operation of the Shelter
(Photo by: Ken Tsai)

With the welcome speech by Mr. Grobbler, he complimented Tzu Chi volunteers for the continued support over the past years, and because of his personal involvement with Tzu Chi, and full trust towards the organisation, he can say with confidence that this blanket donation is only a small part of Tzu Chi's work in the Johannesburg region. Other charity work including Disaster Relief, Winter Relief (along with 20kg Rice Distribution per household) are happening within all the branches in South Africa.

The blankets donated to the facility are restricted for the use within the facility only any forms of resale or personal gain are strictly forbidden. Mr. Grobbler has further encouraged the residents not to forget the support the from Tzu Chi volunteers tonight. Although the volunteers do not ask for any form of return, it will strengthen their love knowing one can pass the good deed forward to others who might need a little support in the future.

After the distribution, volunteers were offered to visit the rest of The Shelter and were all surprised by the level of cleanliness and organization the building presented.

"We have all been assigned with a duty during our stay," one of the residents told a volunteer. "The duties include sanitation of the toilets, shower rooms, locker rooms and dormitories."



A recipient of the Tzu Chi Winter
Relief, in 2002, shares that until today,
he is deeply appreciative of what
Tzu Chi has done for him
( Photo by: Ken Tsai)

"We have never had any gang problems, not to mention drug or alcohol abuse. We were told of the rules here and if you act against the rules, you will be kicked out."

The Shelter is designed for a maximum of 350 occupants, one occupant per bed, but it usually provides accommodation for about 150 vagrancies per night. The aim is to provide the displaced a maximum stay of 6 months only. The Shelter is open to any volunteer program or development during the day.