"You may not be able to fix lives, but if you can make someone feel that their life is WORTH fixing... that is something... something wonderful".

How YOU can help

FINANCIAL SUPPORT
All the people working in Heart-Work are volunteers and the cost of running the courses is covered through informal fundraising and donations. It costs about R2500 per participant for the 20-week course. This includes petrol and transport costs, printing, paper and stationery costs, and telephone, catering and gift bags.

FOOD AND CATERING
Each week of the course, tea, coffee and cookies are taken in for teatime. This is done because eating together is a basic form of nurturing and because of the emotional intensity of the sessions. It is good just to take a break, talk together and enjoy some refreshment before the next part of the session begins. Donations of cookies, muffins, tea, coffee, milk, and mugs are most helpful.
When the full day family workshop is held, tea is provided in the morning and afternoon and lunch is prepared for up to 150 people. Once again, this is meant to be a kind nurturing experience for people who are terribly traumatized by all they have gone through. Many of them also come from quite far, and it is good to give them something to eat before they leave for home again.
We also cater a full lunch for about 150 people at the graduation at the end of the course, which is held on the prison grounds, and any help with food, cool drinks or catering would be a wonderful and most appreciated assistance. We try to make a cooked meal like lasagne and serve it with salads and bread rolls.

FLOWERS
We enjoy having flowers on all the tables at the graduation, and we use white roses or daisies to place on the cross as a picture of forgiveness and healing. The prison is a very dull environment, and during this very special celebration it is just wonderful to bring colour, beauty, nature and wonderful fragrance to this stark, arid environment.

PHOTOGRAPHS & DVDs
We try to take photographs of our graduations to remember these special occasions and we like to take pictures of each participant with their families so that they have a keepsake to remember the occasion. Also, when a loved one is in prison for a long period of time, children grow and change and struggle to remember the realness of their mothers or fathers. It feels like a wonderful kind gift to give them a picture of them with their mother/ father.

NETWORKING
If you are also working in prison or doing similar work outside prison, please contact us. We love to hear what other people are doing and we enjoying working alongside other organisations so that we do not duplicate any work and so that we can continue to be an encouragement to and learn from one another.

FUNDRAISING
Perhaps you are one of those rare individuals who loves raising funds, or who is a successful business person, and knows that your gift is in earning and making money and you would like to partner with us and help to support this phenomenal work. If you are, please contact us, we truly would love to hear from you.

SKILLS TRAINING & EMPLOYMENT
Without really intensive reintegration, and skills training as well as employment opportunities or some kind of income earning options, many of the people being released will lose the hope they have gently nurtured. When this happens alongside the needs they have for basic food, shelter, and the needs of their children for school fees, uniforms, medication, stationery and so on, they feel the rejection and hopelessness of being outside in society. Eventually it begins to feel as if only drastic measures like suicide, returning to prison or committing crime are the only possible options for them.
So, please let us know if you are able to train people in skills that they can use to earn money, or if you are willing to speak to us and allow us to recommend someone we have worked with and feel we could recommend to you for employment. Perhaps think of employing a released offender.

TOILETRY GIFT BAGS
At the graduation which is at the end of the Personal Growth Course, each successful participant is given a gift of toiletries and sundry items that could enrich their lives and facilitate correspondence with their loved ones. These bags typically contain:

Some times if other items are donated to us and are appropriate to include in these bags, then we put them in too. These gifts might include nail varnish or makeup items, cosmetic items such as the donation from Environ of a gift set of face cleanser, moisturizer and hand cream and other items that are nurturing and smell or look beautiful.
Church groups or craft groups often make up the calico bags and decorate them with tie-dyeing or another colourful treatment and each participant is given a personal gift bag with all these wonderful items in them.

Bank Details (download)

Standard Bank Randburg
Account Name - Heart-Work
Account Type - PlusPlan
Branch Code - 018005
Account Number - 425 790 169