A Day Out With the Unlimited Child
The CD team in South Africa ventured out to visit two of the Unlimited Child centers (out of 159 in the area) in the heart of Khayelitsha located in Cape Town. What would have been a normal work Wednesday turned into an emotional and impactful experience that touched all of our hearts. Catherine Deane has been supporting the Unlimited Child initiative for
10 years to date. The Unlimited Child is a non-profit organization that has invested over R30 million into education resources throughout 3050 ECD ( Early Childhood Development) centers internationally which have helped over 1 million South African children.
The Unlimited child provides educational resources such as books, appropriate toolkits, daily class planners, practitioner guides, caregiving training, and on-ground monitoring support. There are many other avenues of support given by this organization. Upon arrival in Khayelitsha, we were accompanied by an Unlimited Child representative alongside a few partners that oversee the creche centers in Khayelitsha. We drove to the main registration office, picked up the partners, and were on our way to see and spend time with the teachers and children from the ECD creches. The CD team got to witness how the children function in their learning environment with their teachers. All the children were quite timid, due to the change in routine with our visit but enjoyed their daily school routines.
What a privilege it is to be able to see firsthand, how impactful such an organization can be on its community and how our donations specifically assist with the sourcing and purchasing of the toolkits for the centers. We were blessed with being able to speak to the principals of the creches and seeing how they are all emotionally driven to make a difference in every child's life. We can make these supporting donations through each garment sold which has x portion donated to The Unlimited Child.
This is all thanks to our Catherine Deane customers and without each of you, this wouldn't be possible. What a privilege it is to assist, help and lend a hand within the South African communities and to aid as many children as possible with an education that will ultimately build their fundamental foundation for their futures. Please keep an eye peeled on the website as we have some fun items coming soon to support The Unlimited Child even more through donations.
In an interview with Catherine Deane, she shares her love and attraction toward the Unlimited Child and what her hopes are within the organization:
How did you find out about the unlimited child?
I found out about the Unlimited Child through the family. My sister’s father-in-law, Iain Buchan, is the founder, and this has given me close insight into their operations and having the confidence that the CD donations are going to the source and being used to purchase the educational toy packs for the ECD (Early Childhood Development) centers. These packs are integral to the early-stage development and fine motor skill development often lacking in these disadvantaged communities. They form the foundation of our brain's ability to learn and process, the absence of which means the children will never be able to reach their true potential.
What drew you to the unlimited child?
The fact that I had this close insight and trust, and that the charity was set up to uplift underprivileged South African children. Having grown up in South Africa I have witnessed an almost overwhelming need for education and upliftment, and I believe if we start with children, then we can have the most impact over time.
How many centers have you visited in and around South Africa?
I have visited several centers in KwaZulu Natal, Gauteng Province, and the Western Cape. It is amazing to see the consistency in the setup within the creches country-wide.
Do you have a hope/goal that you would love to see happen within the Unlimited Child?
The Unlimited Child has just reached an incredible goal of giving 1 million children early-stage development. We are so grateful to be a part of this for the past 10 years. With additional recognition and data behind the impact that is being made, I hope to see more businesses and individuals contributing to this incredible NGO, enabling more outreach and impact for the kiddies in South Africa. From our part at CD, we are planning additional ways to fundraise through creative projects including our soon-to-launch Affirmation T-shirts (I am LOVED), of which all of the proceeds will go to the Unlimited Child. I hope to see then Unlimited Child reach its goal of 10 000 Early Childhood Development centers by 2025 – this is 3 times more centers than are currently in place, so the impact would be significant. Each creche has between 10 – 250 children attending.
