Author: Zeng Dieulv

Brillant painting our entrance gate

Emmanuel cleaning the kitchen

It is our custom to have a ”Cleaning Day” once every few months. These days are always great fun and remarkably community-building. Our early spring cleaning on 9 August proved to be just that. We always start with cleaning bedrooms and then everyone is given a specific task for cleaning the common areas. There was an almost overwhelming spirit of fun, joy, enthusiastic working together, music blaring into the bargain of course! Everyone seemed happy to do their specific job. Once again we were reminded that Mercy House has been greatly blessed with a group of really fine, excellent, fun-filled and responsible young people. The photos below show some of our residents busy doing their thing. The crowning glory, of course, was sitting together at the end of our work, to enjoy a pizza lunch together. As someone said: It was the best cleaning day we have ever had.

Shadadi cleaning play centre chairs

English classes for new arrivals was started as long ago as 2012, at Bienvenu Shelter.  Soon, as numbers grew, it was moved to the Catholic cathedral, where it came under the umbrella of Pastoral Care.  In April 2020, when Lockdown 5 was implemented, the sister-in-charge closed the project.   Now that the main threat of Covid 19 is significantly reduced, and new arrivals still need to learn the language to survive, we have restarted the programme, with very small numbers, at Mercy House and are proud to offer this service for free! Diana is teaching and Eddie translates, however, we also have some new orphans from Eastern DRC and Burundi, whom our Danny is teaching, as they are complete beginners and, coming from the same home area, Danny is able to translate into their home language, which helps. Classes will continue in December and resume after new year.

Danny was brought to us from the eastern DRC when he was only twelve years old. His whole family was killed by rebel soldiers one night, but Danny survived having hidden under his bed. He fled to his aunt, but found soldiers already there and saw them beat his uncle to death. The aunt fled to South Africa, where she got into a women’s shelter, and we took Danny in. Soon, the aunt moved her family to Zimbabwe, hoping for resettlement to Canada, but it never happened and Danny came back. 

It is a great joy to have Danny with us again. He has been proactive in helping in every way he can possibly think of, e.g. repainting walls, etc., in line with our renovations, and in helping other newcomers to learn English. He loves music and is teaching himself guitar and keyboard online with great success. Thanks also to Michael Kaplan, a music teacher, who is assisting him.  

Many people emerge with bitterness having had experiences like our brave Danny. But he is remarkable, He has emerged as a very strong character and carries no bitterness. He spreads a joyful and fun-filled atmosphere in our house community. The photos show him when he first came to us on the day of his First Communion and now, with his beloved guitar!

We introduced our Diogen to our readers when he came to Mercy House about 18 months ago. Having fled from a really tragic situation in DRC and seen all in his family killed, he was blessed only a few weeks after arriving with getting a job, delivering for Takealot on a motor-bike.

It did not take his employers too long to discern what a sterling character he is. In November 2021 he was offered a promotion. The company lent him a car and now he is a driver. This blessing was certainly merited and we are proud of our young man. Well done Diogen. You have got the reward you deserve.

On the 21st of November this year, Rafael and Brielle received their First Holy Communion at Bez Valley Catholic Church. They will not forget this beautiful day, nor will we. 

Festus, known as Papa Rafael, came to us from Rwanda as long ago as 2008. His stay with us extended to 2020. During this time, after 4 years of hard study, he qualified as a fully registered Netcare nurse and married his beautiful wife, Mari Bernard. They now have two quite angelic little boys, one being our communicant, Rafael. Mama Brielle, also known as Mari-Jean, from Rwanda, found herself in an extremely difficult situation in mid-2020, and we were able to accommodate her and her daughter, Brielle.

On the First Communion day, Festus and Mari Bernard, having now moved into their own flat, hosted a beautiful and extremely joyful celebration, with many Rwandese refugees present to share the joy. The photo shows Festus’ family on the left, Mari Jean with her daughter, Brielle, on the right, and in the middle are our volunteer couple from the USA, Paige and Emmanuel.   A great day was had by all. We thank God for all these blessings.

Robert fled from his home country, Burundi, at age 15 on 21 May, 1997.  His father had been killed in the genocide in1994, and he was living with his mother and sister. One day in May 1997, he returned from school to find that his mother and sister had disappeared. He was told that they had been killed in the continuous fighting in the area.  Robert wandered around not knowing what to do, but a journalist found him, took pity on him and helped.  They left the war zone on 21st May 1997 and made their way to South Africa, the journalist even paying for his transport.  When they got to Zimbabwe the journalist was held back on account of documents, but he gave Robert the money to come to South Africa. So, as a boy of 15, he arrived in South Africa alone, not knowing anyone, not having a place to stay and not knowing the language!  He found a shelter housing 650 refugees in Central Johannesburg, but this was closed down a few months later, in view of unhygienic conditions. Again, Robert was alone. He slept in the streets.

On Saturday 8 November 1997, a young Mercy House resident asked me for money to take a sick refugee she had met in the street to the hospital. As we had 3 refugee doctors in the house, I told her first to bring him to Mercy House so that they could assess his condition. I met this young boy the following day. He was extremely distressed and would not even look me in the eye. He had no clothing other than the trousers and shirt that he was wearing. Although we had no room, I just could not send such a distressed young boy away.  So, we took him in, giving him all that he needed by way of clothing, toiletries, bedding, food etc.  Soon he was even smiling and could look me in the eye. What a reward!

Ravienco Manga

In 1998 we got Robert into school, where he achieved outstanding results. The photo shows him, second from the right, in his uniform on the first day of school, together with 3 other young residents. He did well in matric, but as there was no money for further study, he got a job in a shop and moved out. It was much later, in 2014, that he returned to Mercy House for a very emotional visit, with so many memories flooding back to him, because of his sad and difficult past.  He had come, because he wanted to tell me of his life’s dream –  to become an engineer.  By divine co-incidence, our Comboni  Father  Jeremias had had someone in Europe approach him asking if there would be an engineering student whom his family could support! Two and two made four.  He enrolled in 2015 at UNISA, a distance learning university, for a degree in Chemical Engineering and managed to get outstanding results.  In his 4th year, the sponsor found that he was unable to continue with his financial support, so our great friends in the UK, St Richards parish, stepped in and raised the money to see him through to the end.  This was just the crowning glory! His graduation took place in early 2019. He then did honours, in which course he did so brilliantly, that Unisa offered him a bursary to do a master’s degree, even offering a monthly allowance.   In the meantime, he had married a South African woman and had a son who proved to be as bright as his father. This boy, Ravienco, was even made head boy of Observatory East Primary in 2019, and was subsequently accepted at a bursary rate, into the prestigious Holy Family College in Parktown, Johannesburg.  The photos below show: Robert with 3 other refugee scholars, on his first day at school in South Africa, and his son, Ravienco, when we enrolled him at Holy Family College in 2020. The third photo shows them with our volunteers, Paige and Emmanuel, who assisted him with his schooling. 

 Mercy House is so grateful and even proud to have been part of this wonderful story.
“All things are possible for God!”

A saint once said: “Be sure to make friends with the poor. “Jesus said: “Blessed are the poor in spirit…” Most certainly the Zama family from the DRC is not well off and has struggled in their life as refugees.  We are privileged to have got to know them. It has been an edifying and enriching experience and this emanates to a large extent, from the youngest member of the family, Daniel.  

Big brother Baleka helping Daniel

Daniel was born in the year 2006 in South Africa, being the youngest in a large, sadly now, fatherless, family. Due to brain damage at birth, he was born with cerebral palsy. As a result, his limbs have now atrophied;  he also cannot speak. He has to date (2021), spent the 15 years of his earthly life on a mattress on the floor, with his devoted mother looking after him 24/7.  She radiates joy and a spirit of humble service. She and her youngest daughter, Daisy, together with older brothers, Baleka and Joshua, love their Daniel very much and treat him with love, reverence and devotion. Once, in response to a comment that they must be sure to take care of Daniel for the rest of his life, Baleka replied: “Of course, he is my brother.”

Mercy House has supported the family in many ways and, in particular, both Joshua and Baleka with their schooling, for many years, but only in the year 2021, got to know about Daniel and started to visit him. We asked them what we could do to help and they replied, of course, food and furniture, since all they had was the mattresses they were sleeping on, but most of all they badly needed a wheelchair for Daniel.  

After some searching, we got a regular wheelchair for Daniel, but found that he could not use it, since he has no limbs to balance himself and would just fall off. We then had to search to find a company that could make a customized one. This was very expensive, but as God provides, a donation came to us just at the right time. Sitwell – a company that does this –  took great pains to mould a base to fit the seriously deformed body. The wheelchair was delivered on 4th August 2021 – what a breakthrough and life-changer for our beloved Daniel.  Needless to say, the family was delighted and so were we, and also humbled to have been able to help Daniel and lighten his burdens a bit.  The photos show Daniel on his mattress with his brother, on the day we met him and on 4 August 2021, in his customized wheelchair.  It was the first time we had seen Daniel smile. We made him happy…

Life-changing wheelchair brings a smile