A fresh coat of paint, some sprucing up, and a helping hand are the main goals for The Elders Voice, which houses the elderly in Thornhill House in Montclair.
Organisation founder Joanne Herbst is seeking assistance in making the facility look and feel young and lively for the aged living there.
Herbst said the elderly were the forgotten members of society, and some of their residents had been neglected.
Getting assistance from companies as part of their tax-deductible corporate social responsibility programmes or the government had been an uphill battle.
“When we were offered this building in 2014, we had no electricity, and we had a big clean-up operation, and we settled in with the basic furniture and other donations. Now our biggest challenge is that even with us being registered as an NPO, companies are overwhelmed by the number of residents, and we continue waiting for assistance,” said Herbst.
The organisation has other facilities that, combined, involve 100 rooms housing 300 people.
Herbst came up with an idea to tackle the renovations one room at a time ‒ and so the idea of adopt a room was born.
“I thought about this, and I decided on approaching companies or getting people to adopt the renovations, one room each. There has to be a way to eat this elephant in bite-size, and it would be a great way to have a corporate social responsibility for those companies. We will also issue a Section 18A certificate. Plus, the rooms are small, and the task would be bearable for a company to lend a helping hand. The building is solid ‒ our aim is brightening up rooms, from tiling to walls,” she said.
She said they would appreciate a fresh coat of paint and would welcome tiling, linen, plants, a TV ‒ anything that would make the residents’ lives a bit brighter. Companies that contribute would have that room named after it and not referred to as just a number.
Another idea would be for a company or organisation to adopt a room for R500 a month.
“That would make maintenance costs lighter because they face a financial burden of rent and utility costs monthly.”
Some pay these costs from grants, and others have some sort of family help.
“The love I have for helping the elderly inspires me to continue doing what I do. Although we do not owe rental, the times are hard, and we do need a hand,” she said.
Resident Nellie Roux said she was excited about the possibility of getting a freshly renovated room.
“I look forward to living in a room that feels like a hotel,” she quipped.
The Elderly Voice is open to donations. Visit their website and social media sites or contact Herbst at 079 028 6379.
The Independent on Saturday