Orphanage and the township of Mophela
Lily of the Valley is a children’s village that cares for children affected by HIV and AIDS. It is situated in the rural township of Mophela, near Durban in South Africa and backs onto a beautiful private game reserve. The children’s village was established in 1993 primarily as a hospice to care for orphans infected or affected by HIV/AIDS until such time as they died. However, with improved nutrition and improving health care, the children were living much longer than originally anticipated. As a result, it is now home to over 130 children who are raised in a family-unit environment, with approximately six children living in a home with a housemother.
In addition to caring for the children, Lily of the Valley also runs community outreach projects, including gardening and sewing projects. There is also a health clinic and educational facilities for the children of the village. TWOWEEKS have worked in partnership with Lily of the Valley in these endeavours since 2005, when the founding members of TWOWEEKS visited the village and helped assess the health needs of the community.
Lily of the Valley and its sister children’s village are associated with the Abathenjwa Trust.
