Lillydale Home Based Care Centre is located close to Sabi Sands Game Reserve, Mpumalanga, near to andBeyond Kirkmans Kamp Lodge.
The centre began with two woman from the Community Development Forum, who observed that in Lillydale there were a high number of child headed families, very sick HIV/AIDS patients and elderly people with no support at home. The ladies presented community leaders with a home-based care plan that they wanted to initiate. The local clinic assisted the women, encouraging 12 others to join them, and providing training to the volunteers in home based care provision.
In partnership with Africa Foundation, the Lillydale HBC Centre was constructed in 2012. The centre consists of office, large dining / function room, enviroloo ablutions and drilled a borehole where water is now available at the Centre premises. There is a large vegetable garden on site, tended by volunteers, which produced food for the centre to cook and also surplus to sell and generate funds for the centre.
In 2013, Africa Foundation, through the generosity of donors, constructed a large dining hall. The room is used for the children to sit down and enjoy their hot daily meal from, and additionally functions as a meeting room and a space to hold educational sessions.
Today, the centre boasts an office counselling room, 5 environmentally friendly Enviroloo ablutions, kitchen and store room.
Over 300 orphans and vulnerable children are receiving care and support in this Centre, many of whom Part of the extended service that the centre provide for the community are: Visiting chronic patients such as HIV/AIDS, TB, High Blood pressure, etc. They also provide support and guidance to the orphans and vulnerable children. Linking Orphans & Vulnerable Children to the Social workers. The volunteers conduct home visits to the elderly house-bound community members as well as care, provide meals, support and counselling to the orphaned and vulnerable children that rely on this centre for their stimulation, meal and safety. The center not only provides a base from where volunteers work, but it provides a daytime-facility for children who otherwise have nowhere else to go.