The Nkosi Kids were invited for the third year to Max and Merle Viljoens Feathers and Fur Party Farm in Bredell.

Merle spent part of her childhood at the JCA and Strathyre childrens homes and has over the many years I have known her taught me a lot about giving and sharing. Her dream has always been to have farm animals and to build a party farm. Her main business is Triple M Kennels and Cattery for animals boarding, but this has spilled over into many other permanent enclosures housing many rescue cats and the newest two enclosures housing dogs that were rescued from the Bapsfontien squatter camp when it was torn down earlier this year and have been unable to find homes.

Most of the farm animals are also rescue animals and presently there are cows, sheep, goats, miniature horses, geese, rabbits probably over a 100 chickens, and of course Betsy the donkey. Merle has done an incredible job taming and keeping the farm animals tame, and this eventually led to the party farm.

This year there were over 40 kids and as usual the main attraction was the water slide. I was amazed at the under 5 year old kids who had no fear of the water and enjoyed it as much as the older kids. The biggest problem was that they did not have the body weight or the co-ordination to slide down it, so we improvised and ended up pulling them down with a rope. So long as they were able to hold onto the rope, it worked well. The 6 to 12 year olds all eventually got the swing of things and flew down. Best slider this year was definitely Minently followed by Petros. Next popular was the trampoline followed by the swings.

Thabiso was really great with the smaller kids, and whenever I looked, he was pushing them on the swings or was on the trampoline with them. Johanna was unbelievable. She controlled the water slide most of the day with either Fatima or myself, and the day would not have run as smoothly without her help. Zetu and Zintle were a huge help preparing and dishing up lunch. We again had hotdogs. I know it a bit boring, but it’s easy as there is no cooking involved, and it’s easy to heat the sausages (I use Merle’s kitchen in the house).

Dear friends,

Nkosi’s Haven was formed in 1999 by Gail Johnson, the foster mother of Nkosi Johnson, who at the age 11 made one of the bravest and most moving speeches at the Durban hosted, 13^th International Aids Conference in 2000, and became one of the key symbols of HIV/AIDS activism.  Our mission is to provide a safe and nurturing home environment for mothers, their children and orphans left destitute by HIV/AIDS.

We are not an orphanage

We have created a vibrant and secure village environment in which children are cared for by their “foster” mothers in order to receive the nurturing, values and love that are essential for the development of a child.  Whilst many of these children carry the burden of unspeakable pasts, they are given all the support and care that is needed for them to heal these wounds and to make the transition into a normal adult life.

We are not a hospice where people with HIV/AIDS come to prepare to die

At present there are 182 residents spread across the 2 houses in Berea and the village in Alan Manor, comprising 29 mothers and 153 children, of which approximately half are orphaned.

The following article was written by Laurelle Williams and originally appeared in tame Times on November 29,2011, Johannesburg South Africa.

What started out as a ‘boys bet’ turned out to empower two young girls, Patricia Canon (16) and Nonjabulo Khubani (18), residents of Nkosi Haven Village. On 20 November Patricia crossed the finish line of the Momentum 94.7 Cycle Challenge becoming an instant heroine for the youth and if Nonjabulo had her way, she wouldhave still cycled the race with chicken pox but higher powers said it was a no go. Nonetheless, Nonjabulo is still a victor for putting the effort, commitment and dedication in her preparations.

Are you ready to be Freddie? September 5th 2011 would have been Freddie’s 65th birthday and to mark the occasion, family & friends can join us on Sunday the 4th of September to experience a spectacular tribute to Freddie Mercury and Queen! Joseph Clark is widely known for his incredible interpretations of Queen’s music. Those […]

The Soweto Gospel Choir, multi international award winners, including 2 Grammies and 1 Emmy, performed at Nkosi’s 10^th Memorial service, bringing a magnificent, emotional and dynamic dimension to the service.

Nkosi  Johnson’s 10^th Anniversary Memorial Campaign

1^st June marks the 10^th anniversary of Nkosi  Johnson, the young AIDS activist, who passed away from an AIDS related disease on that day in 2001. Not only did Nkosi  give AIDS a face in Africa, but became a world icon when speaking at the opening ceremony of the 13^th World AIDS Conference in  July 2000. Challenging the then government to roll out ARV’s to pregnant women to prevent the virus being passed onto their unborn children and asking for acceptance of all HIV/AIDS infected people as “we are all the same”.

Nkosi  first made international headlines in 1997 when his foster mother, Gail Johnson, tried to enroll him at a local school.  With no policies in place around the admission of HIV+ children into schools, the ensuing battle  to have him admitted brought to the fore the huge gaps in the health, education and social services  pertaining to care, education and acceptance of HIV+ children in schools.  Nkosi pioneered the Government policy that was launched two years later, giving all infected children the right to education.