Rozette Botha will again hike 320 km to raise funds for new premises for children and young adults with profound mental and physical disabilities. The funds raised from her effort will be donated to Queen Butterfly Foundation, a stimulation centre for children and young people with profound disabilities in Roodepoort.
This time, the avid hiker will be walking a substantial portion of the Spanish Camino, Camino De Santiago, for this worthy cause. She will also undertake the hike in memory of her son, Ruan, who passed away from Carbohydrate-deficient glycoprotein syndrome when he was only 21 days old.
Ruan was the first South African to be diagnosed with this rare disease, which results in severe psychomotoric and mental retardation; dysmorphism; coagulation abnormalities; and dysfunction of many organs. Had Ruan survived, he would have been severely disabled, unable to speak, walk or do anything for himself. During his short life, he became blind and deaf. Ruan was also fed through a tube in his stomach because he could not feed and was permanently on oxygen as he stopped breathing 19 times a day. He also struggled with septicaemia every second week and was on eight different medications a day to treat it.
Meanwhile, her brother also has a disabled son who lives in a home for disabled adults, yet another reason why children and adults with disabilities are very close to Rozette’s heart.
“This is my way of honouring Ruan’s short life. There is no better way of doing this by supporting a team of individuals who are doing such excellent work in terms of caring for children and young adults who have disabilities, while also providing much-needed support to their families,” Botha says.
It was very important for Botha to help this a small institution that does not receive government funding and contributions from many families. As a non-government organisation, Queen Butterfly Foundation relies heavily on donations to operate. School fees paid by parents of the children in its care barely cover the operating costs of Queen Butterfly Foundation.
It currently provides care in church classrooms in Roodepoort. Unfortunately, at the end of February 2023 the church gave the Centre three months’ notice to vacate the classrooms due to changes in their own constraints which leaves Queen Butterfly Foundation in desperate need of new premises.
What sets Queen Butterfly apart is the individual, expert and hands-on care that it provides to children and young adults who are incapable of independent movement. Therefore, the foundation only accepts a small number of children so that it can maintain its very low staff-to-child ratio and its high quality of service.
However, with limited numbers permitted on church premises and the small number of children’s parents paying school fees, the Centre is still reliant on donations.
As a small foundation, it is also often overlooked by potential donors and sponsors.
Considering inflation and rising cost of living, the foundation now needs about R70 000 a month to continue providing the quality care that it does.
Queen Butterfly Foundation is headed up by Palesa Mofokeng, who has helped children and young adults with disabilities since 2004.
“After working for a similar organisation for about 15 years, I decided to branch out on my own because I wanted to implement my own ideas that I believed would also make a substantial difference to the lives of children and adults who have disabilities. I believe that our model sets the benchmark for high levels of care, and it is my long-term goal to eventually branch out and replicate it in other communities,” Mofokeng says.
Mofokeng is hoping that, together with other fundraising initiatives, Botha’s walk will raise the R500 000 that is needed to secure a new dedicated premises, while also introducing Queen Butterfly Foundation to other potential donors and sponsors to help cover rising costs.
Botha will be hiking 320km of the French Way from Leòn to Santiago De Compostela. Her journey will begin on 21 May 2023 when she departs from OR Tambo International Airport and returns to South Africa on 16 June. Botha is funding her entire trip so all the funds that she raises from this initiative will go to Queen Butterfly Foundation.
“Considering Rozette’s story, she has a strong connection with the children and young adults in our care, as well as their loved ones. There is, therefore, nobody better to represent Queen Butterfly Foundation. I know that Rozette’s mission will be a resounding success, especially in term of raising awareness of people living with disabilities. This on its own is a worthy enough cause. We are extremely appreciative of her efforts, having also partnered with Rozette on a similar initiative seven years ago. We had so much fun, and it was a resounding success. It created so much awareness around the important contribution that Queen Butterfly Foundation is making towards society and the plight of children and young adults who are living with disabilities and their families. Her efforts also raised funds for our cause and introduced us to many potential new sponsors and donors,” Mafokeng concludes.
Be a hero! Help save the day by following and supporting Rozette’s brave effort through donations big or small to her backabuddy crowdfunding project to secure new premises for our special needs children at Queen Butterfly Foundation.
https://www.backabuddy.co.za/walk-for-premises-for-queen-butterfly-foun
