Six members of the Mvinjelwa family – five children and one adult – will soon be able to sleep peacefully after a group of kind-hearted young people decided to build a house for them.
The family lives in a dilapidated rondavel in Misty Mount, Libode, in the Eastern Cape, and is looking forward to moving into their new two-room house towards the end of July.
Lubabalo Lahlwa said he and five friends were saving money to celebrate and buy presents for one of their birthdays but changed their plans.
“Instead of buying things for ourselves, we decided to identify a family and assist them with food parcels,” said Lahlwa.
“We spoke with a street committee member to help identify a deserving family. They did, and we bought a food parcel for the Mvinjelwa family.”
When they arrived at the family’s home, they realised they needed more than just food parcels.
“The rondavel they are staying in is not in a good condition. When it rains, the rain comes in. We knew they needed help, so we decided to build them a two-room house.”
One adult male of about 20 and five children, aged from three to 19, stay in the house.
“Their uncle isn’t working and survives on piece jobs,” said Lahlwa. “We started building the house last year in August, and we aim to hand it over on 18 July if it is completed by then.”
Each of the six friends saved R500, but it was not enough to build the house, so Lahlwa is asking others to help them raise more.
The person building the house has asked for R14,000.
“We have managed to pay R7,000, and we will have to pay the balance before he finishes the house,” said Lahlwa. “We are asking people to donate so we can complete the house and buy furniture for the family.”
A 14-year-old family member said their mother died when they were still young, and things haven’t been good for them.
“We are grateful to the people who decided to build a house for us,” she said. “When they first arrived with food parcels, we were happy as we depended on our grant money, but we never thought they would come back and build the house.
“When it rains, we know the water will come inside. When there are strong winds, we can feel the wind come inside. There was no difference between us and the people on the street. We were cold and didn’t have proper blankets.”
Pictured above: The rondavel the family are currently living in.
Source: Supplied
