Celebrating Mandela Day in Paarl!

Last Wednesday, July 18th, volunteers from all over the community joined the staff of Monte Christo Miqlat (MCM) and enjoyed devoting 67 minutes of time to helping others as a way to mark Nelson Mandela International Day.  Why 67 minutes?  For 67 years Nelson Mandela devoted his life to the service of humanity--as a human rights lawyer, a prisoner of conscience, an international peacemaker and the first democratically elected president of a free South Africa.  This July 18th also marked Mandela's 94th birthday, and volunteers from 7 different companies in the Paarl Valley and Western Cape helped serve the community at MCM's Bowy House, Tiffany's Community Care Center and Lukhanyo Community Care Center.   

Geratec employees helping at Bowy House

Several staff members from Paarl's Basson and Blackburn spent 67+ minutes at Lukhanyo Community Care Center in Mbekweni.  They attended the music classes that are given there and participated in making musical instruments and playing the drums.

This same group joined in the daily feeding of the children.  Many of them were very emotional as they witnessed the hungry children who came through to have their soup containers filled.  The staff finished their time there saying it was an experience they will never forget.

MCM wishes to thank the volunteer staff members from Geratec-Paarl, Nedbank-Paarl Mall, Walton's-Paarl, Department of Education-Western Cape, SADTU (South African Democratic Teacher's Union), Basson and Blackburn and Paarl Mall for the goods and clothing that were donated and the gift of time that you shared.   It was a blessing for all of us at MCM to see your servant's hearts as you showered love on members of the community. 

It's the middle of winter...MCM Sports is thriving!!!

Aletia Grundling and MCM sports coaches

Girl's soccer game

Boy's sports drills

Growing up in the distressed communities of Mbekweni and Paarl East in Paarl is not easy.  Active street gangs, drug and alcohol abuse and crime are rampant...and a big temptation for our young people.  Additionally, the lack of strong role models continue to present challenges to the next generation.  With five years of experience, now, Monte Christo Miqlat (MCM) has learned that a strong sports program can be a very effective deterrent and positive activity for the youth in our communities.  Through Coaching 1000, the backbone of our program, we have raised up quality post matric youth coaches (several of whom are pictured above with MCM CEO-Aletia Grundling) who help to teach both sports skills and life skills.  Last year we expanded our Coaching 1000 program into 6 local primary schools and 1 high school.  Here we partner with the physical training teacher in their work with the children.  We provide assistance in basic warm-up activities and then assist with sports drills in a variety of sports (i.e. athletics, cricket, soccer, rugby and netball) during school hours.  Also, two weeks before the end of the term, we assist in testing the children by drilling them on various skills that they have learned that term which helps the teacher with the grading of each child.  With 9 youth coaches, we are scheduled in 25 physical training classes and support approximately 750 children each school week.  After school, in the afternoons, we assist the same school children with additional training, specifically for soccer skills.  This involves soccer skills development, drills, life skills and club development.  And all of this is designed to provide an opportunity to hundreds of children to lead positive lives and give them healthy alternatives to the aforementioned street activities.  MCM wishes to thank Emerge Poverty Free (http://www.emergepovertyfree.org) for their support for our Sports Program these past five years, and for creating the opportunity for us to work with the Westhill Endowment (http://ourchildrenschildren.org.uk/Projects) this coming year.  Thank you for partnering with us to touch hundreds of young kid's lives in Mbekweni and Paarl East!

Time for a staff function!!!

Edward Hildebrand worshiping

Pastor Vernon Jacobs sharing

June 28th was a GREAT day for the staff at Monte Christo Miqlat (MCM), because we had our first bi-annual staff function for 2012!  The event, hosted at Tiffany's Community Care Center, started out with lively praise and worship led by our very own Uncle Edward which always gets us all 'fired up.' We were also blessed to receive a warm welcome and message from one of our own board members, Pastor Vernon Jacobs.  His message was an eye opener and motivation to all of us, focusing on the Prayer of Jabez in 1 Chronicles 4:10...enlarging and increasing our own and MCM's territory.  He emphasized that 'territory' does not have to mean real estate or financial gain.  There are so many ways this prayer can be incorporated into life.  Those include: 1) Influence...asking God to expand the area in which you and the ministry can be of influence to others, 2) Responsibility...asking God to increase our area of responsibility whether

Aletia Grundling motivating team

personally or in our jobs, 3) Boundaries...praying specifically for what boundaries you want the Lord to broaden such as personal job coverage, ministry geographical coverage, etc. 4) Time...though God won't necessarily freeze time, He can help us to manage time better and be more efficient both personally and in the ministry and 5) Family...asking God to expand our family relationships whether it be for a spouse, children, etc. 

The braai team

Our very own Aletia Grundling, MCM's CEO, gave her first staff presentation and provided an evaluation of the last 6 months of MCM's performance.  She highlighted a number of 'WOW Moments' for each focus area and ministry and we were all blessed to be reminded about all that God has done in the last 6 months!  We concluded our staff function activities with a wonderful braai prepared by these pictured members of our Sports and Administrative teams, as well as lunch prepared by other members of the MCM team.  We are grateful to everyone who helped to put together such an AWESOME staff function.  We all look forward to the next one in November!!!                  

Monte Christo Miqlat Winter Outreach

Watergat Squatter camp community

MCM staff serving soup

On 9 June 2012, Monte Christo Miqlat (MCM) staff from the Drakenstein Food Centre had the opportunity to partner with the 'Debunk the Junk' youth project from Cape Town. Together with the 'Debunk the Junk' team, our staff traveled to the Watergat Squatter camp near Simondium (just outside of Paarl) with the goal of providing encouragement and engaging with the community about their socio-economic circumstances. Doctor Lynne Cornelissen joined us as well and made herself available for the day to provide health checks and answer medical questions.  Also, Jonlyn Tromp joined our team and worked with the community members on various legal issues.

Smiling faces...happy tummies!

Our activities included a praise and worship session with the community after which the MCM staff handed out soup and bread. Clothing and books were also distributed to community members.  As you can see from this last picture, the youth from the Watergat squatter camp were all smiles and really enjoyed the day. And we were as blessed as they were to have had the opportunity to serve so many! 

Manna from Canada...what a blessing!

20 foot container with 80 drums

Package of dried vegetable soup mix

The month of May has been full of blessings, including our most recent delivery of a container filled with eighty 45-gallon drums stuffed with dried vegetable soup mix.  Food for the Hungry-Canada and Okanagan Gleaners came together to fill this container in order to help us feed thousands of hungry children and families in the Drakenstein Valley.  This is the third shipment that we have received since our partner Emerge Poverty Free in London coordinated the partnership between these organizations and the MCM Food Center which was was opened in 2008. The staff of Monte Christo Miqlat (MCM) is so grateful for this recent delivery!  The dried soup mixture (which consist mainly of brussel sprouts, onions, tomatoes, carrots, peppers, beans, peas, broccoli, cauliflower, beets, turnips, potatoes, and dried peas) has been a main component of the hundreds of pots of soup that we prepare every month.  

Unpacking the drums

Making soup

On the day the shipment arrived, Leandri Linde, our new Community Nutrition Manager said "The vegetables we received today will make a huge difference in the nutritional value of our meals."  Marvin White, our Food Center Manager, has used the soup mix for over a year now.  He said "Now we can feed more people in the community." 

A blessed pot of nutrition!!!

Our FH Canada (Food for the Hungry-Canada) is part of the global Food for the Hungry association, and is a Christian non-profit organization dedicated to ending poverty - one community at a time.  You can learn more about the organization and what they do at www.fhcanada.org.  Founded in 1994, Okanagan Gleaners (www.okanagangleaners.ca) has been gleaning the crops of the Southern Okanagan Valley since 1996, to produce food for the hungry of the world.  They literally take vegetables that would have normally been wasted and turn them into soup mixes that are shipped to hungry communities all over the world.  The MCM staff is grateful that the Drakenstein Valley is one of those communities and we thank our Canadian partners for joining our efforts here!

MCM benefits from Safari half marathon!

MCM staff serving scrumptious food!

May 1st proved to be a beautiful day in Wellington, South Africa...a perfect day for the 25th Anniversary Celebration of the Safari Half Marathon.  This event, which has become nothing less than an institution on many runner's annual schedules, draws athletes and enthusiasts from far and wide. Monte Christo Miqlat (MCM) was thrilled to have been the local charity that was selected to receive a portion of this year's event proceeds.

Sports coaches participated!

What a blessing for MCM!

Sponsored by Safari Dried Fruit and Nuts, a division of Pioneer Foods, this event has expanded over the years to now include a 5km fun run, a 10km walk and a 2 by 10.5km relay race in addition to the half marathon.  This appeals nicely to athletes of all levels.  Pictured here with Aletia Grunding, MCM's CEO, are several sports coaches from our very own MCM sports team, ten of whom participated in this year's 10K.  As this year's charity, MCM also had the opportunity to get great exposure to the over 10,000 registrants with a stall in the center of the event activities.  MCM staff from many aspects of the ministry had the chance to talk to hundreds of race registrants, and sell them delicious foods prepared by MCM's Food Center such as hearty soup, breakfast buns, chicken wings and rusks.  The biggest blessing of the day was when Karen Petersen and Aletia Grundling received a check for R25,000 from Lydia Britz, Safari's Brand Manager and Kevin Lodge from Top Events, the company who organized the event.  MCM thanks Safari for the wonderful donation and Top Events for coordinating such a fantastic event!

MCM and Rotary...partners at the Cheese Festival

For the first time, Monte Christo Miqlat (MCM) was blessed to participate in the annual AgriExpo Cheese Festival.  Held at Sandringham Farm in Stellenbosch, the South African Cheese Festival is the most prominent event of its kind in Southern Africa and is staged over four days...this year from April 27th-30th.  This award-winning South African Cheese Festival is a celebration of all things cheese, and features a variety of exhibitors that not only include 17 tons of cheese, but a variety of other food items and beverages.  MCM had the opportunity to partner with Paarl Rotary during the entire event and the team chose a 'healthy foods theme,' creating a menu of various healthy foods all prepared by MCM's Food Center.  As most of you know, the Food Center prepares more than 5,000 meals daily to underprivileged children in the Drakenstein Valley and beyond.  The stall attracted a lot of attention from the more than 30,000 festival goers who attended this year's event.  We were pleased that visitors were very interested in the various community projects run by MCM and many individuals made donations on the spot.  Other individuals offered their assistance in different ways.  The MCM staff reported that the visibility was very valuable for both MCM and Paarl Rotary.  Pictured here (from left to right) are Pat and Dave Deacon from Rotary, Marvin White-MCM's Food Center Manager and Cathy Sias from MCM's Tiffany's Community Care Center.