Refugees in South Africa

With lots on the news recently regarding refugees I thought I would share what my daughter, her husband and neighbours have been up to in South Africa. As you may know they work as missionaries, they have adopted two little Zulu boys and are hoping to adopt a third little boy who they have been caring for the last eighteen months. 

They are living in Kwa Zulu Natal and just recently in the Durban area, xenophobic attacks broke out on people from other African countries who are living in SA with refugee status. Many of these people have had to leave their homelands due to war and other traumatic experiences. 

To cut a long story short, many of the refugees have been found homes in other places, away from these attacks but there were about 150 people, mostly from Burundi or the Congo who were without anywhere to live, my daughters  neighbours (and close friends) have a farm and decided to take these people onto their land as their guests. Together Martin and Vashti and their neighbours have collected tents and other donations from others in the area to enable these refugees to set up home on their farm land. 

For now these people are safe, but due to laws in this area it would appear that they can't stay on this land indefinitely and so those caring for them together with sympathetic lawyers, new homelands are being sought for them  to move to.

I thought I would share some photos with you

Along with adults there are of course children, as well as homeschooling their own children Vashti and their friends are helping to set up classes for these beautiful refugee children

The top left photo shows teenagers from Vashti's church youth group teaching the refugee teenagers some dance moves :) top right shows the children enjoying a TV show and the bottom photos show Martin and their neighbour having fun with the children

Top left shows a meeting with lawyers, knitting at the same time :) Vashti has loved watching these people cooking outdoors

Vashti on the left together with a church friend who came along to visit the refugees

In order to find new homelands for these people, Martin has been taking down their stories to establish their backgrounds and what brought them to SA in the first place. The stories are harrowing, these people have gone through such trauma in their lives, please pray that God will continue to heal their hearts and their bodies.