Author: Zeng Dieulv

Thank You Holy Family College

Ravienco Manga

We thank Mr Frank Sobreira, principal, and management of Holy Family College, for their encouraging support of our Mercy work. This college provides an excellent academic education, but also emphasizes values – so much needed in education today. But it is expensive! Mercy House could never afford such fees. Mr Sobreira came to the rescue. Having met our Mercy House boy, Ravienco Manga, who was head boy of his primary school last year and achieved excellent marks, Mr Sobreira decided to give him a bursary, meaning, a significantly reduced fee. Our boy was so excited, having set his heart on going to that beautiful college.

 

Mercy House, together with the American International School of Johannesburg (AISJ), made up the difference in fees, AISJ coming to the rescue once again! Thank you, Mr Sobreira, thank you AISJ and everything of the best to our Ravienco, whom we know, will not let us down.

 

(from left to right) Robert, Ravienco, Emmanuel and Paige at Mercy House

The photos below show Ravienco in his school uniform, and another with his father, Robert (who lived at Mercy House long ago when he himself was in school!) and Paige and Emmanuel from AISJ. And thanks to our God who really does breakthrough and achieve the impossible again and again!

Congratulations To Our Festus

 

Festus came to Mercy House in April 2008. Not long afterwards his fiancee arrived. They got married and now have 2 adorable little boys.

When Festus told us about 6 years ago that he wanted to study nursing, it seemed a mad idea, given the fact it would mean 5 years study, whilst he had a family to support. But Festus has the character not to give up and forged ahead, proving that even under the most difficult circumstances, dreams really can come true. In February 2020, he got the news that he has passed his final exam and now, after 5 years of perseverance, he is a registered Netcare Nurse. He was immediately employed at Netcare Milpark Hospital in Johannesburg, where he did his training. We are proud to say that this brings to 3, the number of young refugees whom we have been able to assist with training at Netcare and who are now working as fully qualified nurses in Netcare Hospitals around Johannesburg.

Congratulation and well done, Festus. Mercy House is proud of you. Do not forget all those whose support (financially and otherwise) got you this far, and all we ask is: please be an excellent and dedicated nurse.

Saturday Extra Lessons Continue

 

Senior boys’ extra lessons from Teacher Innocentia

 

Sara taking a break  from the junior extra class with Twinkle (dog)

 

With the start of the new academic year, we resume our Saturday extra lessons. Innocentia teaches Zulu and Afrikaans and Steven helps in the field of Business Studies. Our Colby is also assisting several matriculants with online education programs.

We thank this team for their hard work and commitment.

Celebrating Our 25th Birthday

On Friday 9th August we celebrated our 25th birthday in a very beautiful and meaningful celebration. It began with  Holy Mass celebrated by our Comboni Father Jude. After that several refugees related their stories as to how they got to Mercy House and how their lives had changed since then – as one refugee put it: his life “turned downside up!” These were very powerful messages. After this Father Jude released some helium-filled balloons which rose up into the sky as a sign of the blessing we would always like Mercy House to be. Then there were refreshments, and a lucky dip, followed by lunch. It was just another of those really joyful Mercy House celebrations.

Unexpected Easter Joy

Easter is always an occasion of joy at Mercy House. We always have the raining down of chocolate eggs from heaven – this “heaven” being the garage roof! But that was not all. No one expected an even more joyful blessing: our former Comboni Provincial, Father Jeremias, who was a great supporter of Mercy House until he was transferred to Rome, suddenly appeared at our garden gate! He had come to SA on a short visit and remembered our Easter celebrations well. It was a great joy to see him and we thank him for taking the time to pop in. The photo shows Father with some of our Mercy House family on that occasion. We hope for this blessing again and know that Father Jeremias continues to follow our progress with interest and affection from a distance.    

Amazing Miracle In Ivan’s Life

In our last update, we mentioned that two of our school boys had just written their matric, and that Ivan desperately wanted to be a teacher. The problem was how to finance a four-year degree in education, by no means a small challenge – so it seemed like mission impossible.


We advised Ivan to try to get work and save to do the degree of his dreams later on.  However, at the beginning of this year, we approached Holy Family College, an excellent private Catholic school, to ask if there would be any chance of him getting a learnership at their school. To our great astonishment, he was very well received.  The school principal, Mr Frank Sobreira, accepted him as a learner teacher and the school will pay for his entire degree, even gives him a small allowance for transport etc. It is remarkable.  

Ivan started his job in January this year and has already started a Care group at the school. On the 18th of June, he brought the group to visit Mercy House and meet some of our scholars and students.  It was an extremely joyful occasion, as the photo shows. They also brought foodstuffs with them. We thank Ivan and his students for giving us this joy.  

Ivan has already been greatly praised by the principal for his excellence in everything he does. He deserves what he has got and we wish him every blessing in following his dream career, and of course, the school will benefit from having him.  A very sincere and heartfelt thank you to the principal, Mr Frank Sobreira, who facilitated this amazing miracle! The blessing will return a hundredfold!

A New Beginning For Fleury

(from left to right) Fleury, Geetendra, and Shanelle

In our last update, we related our young Burundian Fleury’s sad history.  But the story did not end with those tragedies. First of all, he found a home in Mercy House, but now a beautiful new beginning has happened in his life. Shanelle Beharie, one of our co-workers, and her husband, Geetendra, decided that they would like to take him to live with them permanently as part of their family. It all happened earlier this year. At our 25th birthday celebration, Shanelle expressed her joy, saying she sees why God has not blessed them with children until now – that this was God’s way of getting her to “adopt” Fleury. He moved schools and is now in grade 11, and they live only a few houses away from Mercy House.  So, the story has had a happy ending for all. Thank you Shanelle and Geetendra. You see how God has blessed you after all! See photo of the three.

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