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Aktuelle Projekte und Neuigkeiten
News and project updates
Blog Archiv
Project updates - Vereinsaktivitäten 2025
Dear Friends and Members of Lucky Beans,
Thank you for being here!
We would like to reflect on 2025 with you, and take a journey through our projects in South Africa…Enjoy the journey!
To see more details about each project, all project titles are linked to their respective websites.
To see more images, click on the highlighted words.
MUSIC VOYAGE
Music Voyage is a "grass roots" organisation that brings music to many communities, and has expanded enormously in the past few years.
To help them meet their growth needs and demands for more instruments, we sponsored a set of trumpets and a shed to store some of their instruments in. These have been a huge success!
If you are interested to read more about their inspirational projects during 2025, we have attached their Newsletter.
DRAKONDALE
I was able to meet up with Eden in November 2025, and catch up personally with her.
She had a very successful year at Drakondale in 2025.
She excelled in her academics and was voted again onto the Prefect student council for 2026.
She has 2 more years at Drakondale, and has started 2026 with a light happy energy.
She is a very special young student who is very caring of others, despite living in a relatively challenging environment.
We are proud of her ability to stay focused and commit to her future.
Aphile, whom we sponsored through her high school years, has been at the University of Cape Town for 2 years now, and did well in her exams.
We are really proud of her courage and determination.
She is active in the choir, as well as supporting some other students with their studies.
She has started her third and final year now, with new enthusiasm.
ANGEL RUTH’S SOUP KITCHEN
Jürgen and I were able to visit Nokuthula in November of 2025. She continues to be a shining light in this community where they experience so many daily hardships.
The soup kitchen continues to run well. She is feeding between 20 - 30 children per week, with help from some of the mothers in the community whose children are receiving meals.
Nokuthula is also very active in the local church community, and offers “Sunday school” to young children as well as teenagers. We also sponsored supplies and toiletries for the teenagers at the end of last year. Many of them lack hygiene articles, which we supplied. She is a remarkably warm-hearted woman, as well as being very clear and strict. She is very well respected in this community where there are lots of conflicts and daily violence.
We are very grateful to Nokuthula for her amazing contribution to supporting the children of Lidgetton.
ACTION IN AUTISM
The learner and employees funded by Lucky Beans in 2025:
- Hailey Chilindi (scholar)
- Michelle Edmonds (young autistic facilitator)
- Precious Sokhulu (facilitator) young adult autistic supporter
- Londiwe Msimang (carer)
“Hailey is a good child who is living with her mother, little sister and grandparents. She is a bright and enthusiastic child who has made significant progress in various areas. Despite challenges associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), she demonstrated exceptional academic abilities and improvement in motor skills.”
Michelle, who is also autistic, is now in a support role at AIA. She continues to learn and grow into her new roles in the Early Learning and Intervention Centre.
What Michelle has to say about her work in 2025: “I’ve been enjoying my work a lot. I help the children with things like toileting, playtime, class work, ring time and snack time. I also help them change their names on the daily program if they need it. I feel like I’ve learned a lot already, especially when it comes to understanding the children better and knowing how to help when their behaviour gets more challenging. I’m getting more confident with that, which makes me feel proud.”
The Shahumna Centre - what Precious has to say about her experience as a facilitator…
“Over the course of 2025, I have continued to grow in my role as a facilitator at the Skills Transference Centre. One of the main areas of development for me this year has been adapting my facilitation style to support an increasing number of neurodivergent students. Each student presents a unique set of strengths and support needs, and meeting these needs has required me to continually reflect, adjust, and build on my previous approaches to ensure inclusive and meaningful engagement.
This process has not only deepened my understanding of neurodiversity but has also helped me realise that learning is ongoing—even for facilitators. Every new learner introduces new opportunities to adapt and improve, and I am committed to that journey. I continue to lead the Food Production & Catering programme, and this year I’ve placed strong emphasis on teamwork, independence, and structure within the kitchen. As our students have taken on more complex tasks, it has become very important to create clear communication pathways and structured routines.
I have made this a key focus in my facilitation, ensuring that students are guided effectively through recipes, hygiene practices, and baking schedules. Together, we have prepared a range of dishes, including mince curries, vegetable stews, and an assortment of fresh baked goods—buns, rolls, and breads. These experiences are not only practical but form the foundation for the students’ independence and sense of achievement. I’ve also continued supporting our baking initiative with the Hilton Garden Inn, guiding student to consistently meet high standards for corporate orders. Watching them grow in confidence as their products are enjoyed by customers has been incredibly rewarding.
Beyond the kitchen, I’ve contributed to the Business Studies and Arts & Crafts areas of the curriculum, providing calm and consistent support. I take pride in offering a stable presence for the students and ensuring that the daily operations of the Centre run smoothly, particularly for our sole female student, with whom I’ve built a strong and supportive rapport. My ease in communication and nurturing approach has been especially important in maintaining inclusive participation across all areas.
I am proud of the progress I’ve made and the work we continue to do at the Centre. This year has reinforced my belief in the power of inclusion, structure, and authentic support in empowering every student to thrive.”
“I am currently employed as a Care Assistant at Action in Autism. My duty is to look after children, make sure that they are fed, they follow their everyday routine and hygiene protocols for their wellbeing. I have worked at Action in Autism for the past two years and have gained experience and exposure in the field. I now have a better understanding of working with special needs children. I am now able to deal with their different behaviours, able to handle them during meltdowns and when they are dysregulated."
SABRINA LOVE FOUNDATION
I came across the Sabrina Love Foundation through a fellow South African, and simply fell in love with this project. I reached out to them, and offered some sponsorship. We sponsored a new astroturf for their playground, since many of the children are handicapped and need to have a safe ground to play on.
They provide nurturing, comprehensive care for children with disabilities, as well as empowering them to be included in mainstream learning programs. They also offer parent empowerment programs. Their vision is remarkable and deeply impactful, giving hope to a positive future for South African children.
Young students at Durban University of Technology
At the end of last year, a young student, Ntuthuko, from Durban University, contacted me and asked if we offered food parcels to students. He said there are many very poor students at university who are supposed to receive support from the state, but the funding does not always come through. He was sharing his food with a friend, and they had now run out of supplies. His friend was too ashamed to ask for help.
I felt touched by his openness to reach out, so I had a call with them, and immediately felt good and trusting of these young men. I offered to support his friend, Mpendulo, with the help of some of my yoga students when I told them the story. The connection with these young men continues….we will see how they go on with their studies and their lives.
The young man, Mpendulo, whom Lucky Beans sponsored, wrote this to me:
“I would like to sincerely thank you for the support, encouragement, and belief you have shown me. Your kind words and guidance truly motivated me during this journey. I’m grateful for the trust you have in my integrity and potential.”
I learnt from this experience to deeply trust my gut feeling, and also to reach out to the young adult generation who are now trying to create a new South Africa.
Looking ahead
For 2026, we will continue to divide our funding up between the projects.
More details to follow at our next Annual General Meeting in the summer.
Thank you
We would like to take this opportunity to wish all our friends and members of Lucky beans a wonderful unfolding into 2026, may it be a year filled with more peace, joy and love for all.
Thank you for your continued support towards our small contribution in making a difference in children's lives in these South African communities.
Warm wishes,
Fiona and Jürgen