INSTITUTIONALIZED CHILD CARE IN URBAN SOUTH AFRICA

his contribution as a gardener, although many of the flowers and vegetables were often
tended to by Pastor Mike with the help of one or two younger boys. I would frequently
see him directing a couple kids at a time, excited to water flowers and to monitor their
progress.
Of all the basic needs on which Pastor Mike was unwilling to compromise, security
seemed to be the most urgent. Given the nature of the neighborhood of Hillbrow, this
came as little surprise. “If anything were to happen to one of the kids while they were
outside, if somebody like Phumeza were to be kidnapped and trafficked, that would be
my responsibility. Even internally, I have to be very careful with the people I hire.
Ultimately, everything that contributes towards or jeopardizes the children’s security
comes back to me.” To protect against any external dangers, the staff enacted measures
like limiting children’s abilities to go off-site, requiring care mothers to be informed and
children to be signed out within the office. In the center’s long history, only a few events
stand out as times the children’s safety had been threatened internally. “There are a
couple of care mothers we’ve had to let go of before. When it came to discipline, a few of
them were just too harsh and refused to adjust. Sad to say we’ve had an incident before
where I had to fire a staff member because of inappropriately touching a child. But I have
a system in place that leads to me hearing about these things when they occur.” “Who do
the children tell? Is it a care mother or whoever they happen to feel safest around?” I
asked. Pastor Mike responded that it was usually Nancy. “I’m becoming more and more
careful. Even with international volunteers now. I either need to have a relationship with
them directly or they need to come through a church. I need them to have some form of
accountability.”
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