We Have A Cause - Aaron Lewani

It is a Saturday morning, February 23rd. We are on our way to Consol Homes, a Goods for Good partner, to participate and monitor distribution of the various materials provided to them from the recent shipment. Masekese Centre, which doubles as a Consol Homes Headquarters, is our most important stop because of the large number of people that attend the distributions.

Upon arrival, our first greeter was Malizani Mose. Malizani is a dedicated volunteer with a big heart who I always look forward to seeing. I made a flattering remark about the new uniforms directed at the group of women she was standing with and they immediately broke into a roar of laughter. The response was a welcome surprise that instantly took me back to being in the village so long ago. It had been a long time since I heard such laughter, because recently life here has been very difficult for everyone. It was clear that these women were laughing from their hearts and were quite proud of the new uniforms.

The purpose of the uniforms is to help make volunteers more accessible to community members and children. A volunteer who has a uniform can easily be identified when working in villages. Malizani joked, “Even in large groups we are conspicuous in our beautiful uniforms.” Another lady added that when a volunteer is provided with a uniform, they feel loved and appreciated by those they are working with. “These uniforms are a motivation to us as volunteers and also inspire other people who doubt the logic of our work, particularly our fellow women,” said Agnes Milizi. She also added: “It encourages new membership to the volunteer force because of how professional we look; even the children are more proud of their caretakers.”

Christina Msudzi, a volunteer from Phandula CBCC, explained to me how she felt about the new uniforms. She said, “I am now enjoying my work more than before because of this uniform. But, the most important thing is still the work we do for and with the children.” Malizani jumped in, “Our work always drives us to move forward every day. I am very hopeful that through our work of encouraging children to go to school, some of our students will even reach University. This makes the students more valuable people in our society and will bring greater change in our communities. We now have a cause to fight for!”

I believe it was evident that the group of women I was chatting with enjoyed the discussion of their work and felt comfortable speaking freely regarding both the uniforms and their work. Indeed, they have a good reason to love and be very proud of their dedication. The closing statements made by the volunteers particularly affected me. Their conviction and unyielding faith that one day they will see some of the children they are helping today changed for the better, truly inspired me.