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Sandton philanthropists needed to help keep Kelvin-based Juno Aurora Haven’s doors open
The Juno Aurora Haven for children in Kelvin has fallen into dire straits and needs emergency philanthropic assistance from the Sandton community to keep their mission of helping the children of Johannesburg alive.
Spurred by the haven’s urgent need for assistance, the haven’s demure and soft-spoken manager, Chaya Fenwick, along with seven-month-old resident Mangalihle, bravely opened up on the home’s needs.
“The problem is that I’m a private person: this is so hard for me. I wouldn’t say I like media; I don’t enjoy publicity. Things have just escalated to the point where we desperately need assistance,” Fenwick shared. “We are blessed to still be running, and taking care of the children. It’s been a miracle. We currently home 25 children aged from seven months to 15 years old.”
Originally established as a daycare in 2001, operating as Hugh’s Haven in Yeoville, Juno Aurora Haven evolved into a care facility for children who found themselves abandoned, or removed from their families.
The decision was taken in 2014 to become a home, because of nine children who had been abandoned at the institution when it was still operating as a daycare. Additionally, Fenwick’s partner, Hugh, had been tragically murdered at the premises back in Yeoville while protecting the daycare’s children.
“We moved out of Johannesburg for the Randvaal area, and back to Johannesburg again – since it was so difficult to get funding on that side,” Fenwick recounted. “We’ve been at these current premises in Kelvin since 2017. A dear friend of mine is a part-owner of the house we’re currently in: we pay very minimal rent, just to have a lease agreement in place.”
A visit to the haven on August 28 verified that some of the home’s children were being homeschooled. Fenwick explained that this was because they didn’t have birth certificates yet, indicating that social workers were working with the courts towards remedying this.
“The social workers are experiencing quite a challenge in tracing some of the families to sort the situation out,” Fenwick explained. “We’re lucky there is a school close to us that accommodated our children for five years without birth certificates.
“At the end of last year, they called us into a meeting to explain that they can no longer keep the children there without birth certificates. We had to make really quick decisions, so I decided on homeschooling fifteen of the older children as of this year,” said Fenwick.
The immediate needs of the Juno Aurora Haven are varied. Topping the haven’s list is assistance with paying for crucial services rendered to the institution.
“Specifically, we need funding for the teachers’ salaries especially, and for running costs like utilities and stuff that we cannot get donated,” Fenwick said softly. “Our consistent funds, which come in monthly, are under R5 000; our salaries for the staff, and teachers, is over R30 000 a month.”
Fenwick concluded with a brief background of how she came to be caring for seven-month-old baby Mangalihle – painting a vivid picture of how some of her children came to find themselves residents of the Juno Aurora Haven. She also highlighted how none of the children at the home are up for adoption.
“A friend of mine found him and his mom living in the streets in the middle of winter. He was born three months premature, and the fact that he’s survived is a miracle,” Fenwick said. “We don’t specialize in adoption, and most of them still have family – but have been removed from parents for various reasons.”
If you’re in any position to assist the Juno Aurora Haven in Kelvin with anything, from donations, monetary assistance, or even a car – kindly feel encouraged to contact Chaya Fenwick on 082 480 6935.
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