Necessary Education & Life Skills for 250 Girls

The Pretty Powerful Campaign to empower young girls - a partnershp between Heartbeat and Bobbi Brown has kicked of when 20 of Heartbeat's young girls from the Katlehong and Vosloorus' Projects attended a workshop at Estee Lauder's Head Office in Kayalam.  A week later it happened for 20 girls of our partner Project, Bell Valley, near Cape Town.

The girls have been treated from beginning till end - it started with breakfast, a surprise pack, tips on basic skincare and make-up sessions and ended with a lunch.  They were motivated by the Bobbi Brown Regional make-up artist with these words from Bobbi Brown: "The secret to beauty is simple - be who you are" and "I believe all women want to look like themselves, only prettier and more confident!" Vivian Thakhuli, a former Heartbeat benefiaciary, gave the girls inspiration with her talk on Emppwerment - "beauty start with your inner-self (conficence, dreaming big, realising abilities) and it will automatically reflect on the outside".

All the girls agreed that it was a day to remember and that they have been empowered to be pretty powerful leaders of the future!

Vivian Thakhuli, the founder of IMBEWU Foundation, will start with her workshops in the near future. These workshops will develop a social platform for girls and young women from disadvantaged bacgrounds to build confidence.  It will expose the girls to the opportunities that await them and educate them into channelling themselves towards breaking through and tapping into those opportunities.  Through social development learning the girls will be moulded and groomed in thinking independently and taking control of their future.

Heartbeat strives to support children through various activities to ensure that children can excel academically.  Heartbeat offers specific services to school going children including home work assistance during school holidays and Saturdays, and equipping them with school uniforms and stationary.  The home work assistance takes place at Heartbeat’s After School Centres (ASC) where the children also receive a meal.  Between February and April 2013 Heartbeat assisted the young girls in its programmes as follows:

• 282 received assistance with their homework;
• 78 girls who did not have school uniforms were assisted with uniforms;

The girls were also assisted with psychosocial services at Heartbeat’s After School Centres (ASC) and during home visits from the child care workers. During the period:

• 422 girls visited the ASCs on a regular basis;
• 848 were visited at home by the child care workers;
• 8 received memory work helping them to copy with the loss of a parent/relative and
• 35 received indivudual counselling by a qualified social worker.

Heartbeat has partnered with Bobbi Brown from Estee Lauder through the Pretty Powerful campaign. Bobbi Brown has announced the evolution of the brand’s Pretty Powerful campaign into a new global charitable initiative that will continue to celebrate the empowerment of women. With the launching of their new Pot Rouge, two of Heartbeat’s female Youth Ambassadors had the chance to speak to the delegates. It was quite apparent that they are developing into pretty powerful young girls themselves.  Heartbeat is planning, with the support and assistance of Estee Lauder, to host empowerment workshops with Heartbeat girls at some of its Projects country wide. A special thanks to Bobby Brown and Estee Lauder for their support and contribution.

One of Heartbeat's previous beneficiaries, Vivian Thakhuli, has partnered with Heartbeat to give back to the Community.  She is a facilitator for young women with Got It Goin'On Worldwide Global Division South Africa.  In her own words:  "With the help of community based organizations like Heartbeat, I have been able to get support that led me in realizing my greatest passion in life, one being to empower others and give back to those that come from disadvantaged backgrounds like I did".

Vivian will be assisting at our Projects with an Empowerment/Life Skills Programme for our girls. This Programme focusses on:

- Installing life-long strategies to cope with every area of a young girl's life,

- Encouriaging a philosophy of "sisterhood" and less about selfishness,

- Building girls' confidence, belief in themselves and culrural pride,

- Increasing physical activity and attention to health,

- Has a positive effect on overall school/community climate.

A big thank you to all our donars that made all of this possible!

• Our proud Youth Amassadors (DOCX)