Bless a Baby Par-Tea 2024
This year marked a turning point in Bless a Baby’s annual fundraising ‘Par-Tea’. The event held in the ESCC hall marked the 22nd year of the Bless a Baby ministry’s existence. There were brightly coloured balloon displays, lots of raffle prizes and Rouchelle Liederman was the guest artist.
As usual, there was an air of celebration, however, for the first time most of the ministry’s support came from outside of El Shaddai Christian Church and more people from beyond ESCC attended the birthday festivities from within the church. While members of El Shaddai have been faithfully supporting this ministry since its inception and continue to do so, the shift is great! It indicates that the ministry has grown into something that’s been embraced by the wider Cape Town community and the many financial contributions and practical gifts from within ESCC have been amplified so that many more moms and vulnerable babies can receive support!
Bless a Baby also announced their new collaboration with NewDay United and the Kolisi Foundation, which the organisation is thrilled about. Bless a Baby will add Power 2 You bags to all the Bless a Baby bags. The Power 2 You bags are an initiative against gender-based violence. A few weeks ago, police sergeant Sithole shared at ESCC that there is an alarmingly high rate of domestic violence in Durbanville. It’s a problem that affects much of South Africa.
How it all started
The ministry was birthed in 2002 after Judy McCallum heard of babies going home without clothing twice in one week, some just tucked in their mom’s tops. She was deeply moved, went home and sewed a simple nappy bag. She gathered 10 ESCC ladies to brainstorm and share resources, talents and connections to see how they could help.
You can watch how Bless a Baby started and what it has grown to today, below.
