Progress Report - 05.01.2011
Progress Report - 16.06.2008
Progress Report - 15.03.2008
Progress Report - 26.06.2006

Progress Report - 05.01.2011

I made 2 visits to Rehoboth in 2010. The village contiues to be a hive of activity. Its hard to imagine that in 2001 - when Boomerang staged its first function - there were only 2 kids living on the property and the first house was yet to be built.

Village One Now Complete

There are 11 houses in the village containing 55 kids and 11 foster-parents. Associated infrastructure such as the clinic, sports-field and guest accommodation will service village 2 as well when completed. There are clearly a number of challenges in looking after this number of children. For instance, with 10 now going to "big school" the kids are attending 4 different schools.....a logistical nightmare! Most importantly, their health has generally been good during the year and mercifully none have been lost.

Village Two Now Underway

The second village is adjacent to the first. Please go to the "photo" section of this website for an illustration.Four houses are currently under construction with the entire complement of ten expected to be complete in 2011. Funding pressure at present is acute but there is a saving of approximately R800,000 - out of a total of R5 million - by having the builders remain on site.

Half-Way House Now Functional

Since our last report, a house has been purchased in Port Shepstone (about 15 kms from the Rehoboth village) which functions as a "halfway-house".The purpose of this facility is to be a home for older boys, thereby freeing up space for more kids in the village itself. It currently houses 5 kids.

Geoff Mymin

Progress Report - 16.06.2008

I visited the village with Megan Caminsky representing a large prospective donor The Victor Daitz Trust. They appeared to be very favourably disposed to Rehoboth and appear likely to fund at least a couple of new houses when land is purchased for a new village.

Village Completion

The village is now essentially complete. It is housing a full complement of 44 kids and 11 foster-mothers in 11 houses. Other infrastructure recently completed was a Clinic, Sports Field and Guest Accommodation - this is a potential revenue-raiser as it can accommodate groups of 10 and more.

Future Plans

The successful completion of the village has attracted growing sponsorship from various organizations and greater government assistance. In addition the blueprint has now been established for a far easier rollout of further villages than was the case with the first. The Trust is now committed to constructing further villages and is close to securing land near Pennington - about 100 kilometres from Port Shepstone. It is also intending to construct a “halfway-house”. This will accommodate kids when they reach the age of 16 and leave the village. It is now likely that the kids will live substantially longer than originally envisaged because of the advent of anti-retroviral drugs.

Visit of Alfons and family to Sydney and associated function

We are very excited that Alfons and Yvonne, the managers of the Rehoboth village, will in August be visiting Sydney with their 2 children. We will be holding a function on Tuesday 19 August at the Cammeray Golf Club in their honour so please leave this date open.

Geoff Mymin

Progress Report - 15.03.2008

The health of the kids is remarkable given their medical condition. This is clearly due to the quality of the care they are receiving, both emotional and medical, and the family environment in which they grow up. The two who were the first arrivals , Lebo and Londiwe, are now around 9 years old. They have come through a variety of illnesses but are happy , well-adjusted kids. Others have tragically passed away, generally because they were critically ill on arrival.

Houses and Kids

Two further houses have been completed and another is underway. This will leave 2 more to achieve the intended final number of 11. At present a full compliment of 32 kids are being accommodated in the 8 available houses.

Clinic

The clinic has now been completed. This has resulted in a significant reduction in waiting time at the Murchison Hospital. Yvonne’s nursing skills are now being well utilised.

Swimming Pool

A donation was received to build a swimming pool. A further donation funded a solar heater enabling swimming to occur year-round.

Sports Field

A Sydney donor, David Paradise, and his family have funded the construction of a sports field. The land has been flattened in preparation.

Geoff Mymin

Progress Report - 26.06.2006

Please read the comprehensive report on Rehoboth by one of our principle donors – Jonathon Trollip. Jonathon was visiting the village for the first time with two of his children, and his report provides a vivid picture of the deep emotions felt by him on finally viewing the product of his enormous energy and enthusiasm.

I visited Rehoboth with Lynne Perl at the end of April. Developments post Jonathon’s report are as follows:

Kids

There is currently a full complement of 24 children in the existing 6 houses.

Houses

An area has been pegged for the building of another 4 houses. Construction is to start shortly.

Purchase of vehicle

A substantial donation was received by Rehoboth for the purchase of a Toyota van to be used principally for transporting the kids to school. A portion of this donation came from Boomerang post the Yesterday premiere, but the bulk came from donors organized by the Trollip family. We congratulate them on another excellent fundraising effort.

Purchase of adjoining land

The intended purchase of the neighbouring property alluded to in the report unfortunately fell through during negotiations.

Consruction of clinic

The clinic is almost complete. This will be a major time-saver for Yvonne (a qualified nurse) as the large queues at Murchison Hospital will be avoided.

Foster parent day

An information day for prospective foster parents was held on the day of our visit. About 20 prospective applicants were there. It was most impressive. The quality of foster-parents is probably the key to the success of Rehoboth, and is particularly critical now as we expect a further 16 kids to move in during the next 12 -18 months as the houses are completed.

Geoff Mymin