Dear Friends,

Monday 26th January 2009 was an amazing day for Ikamva Labantu and for Cape Town. In case you somehow missed it, a radio telethon was held on 567 Cape Talk Radio to raise funds to feed and care for orphans through Ikamva Labantu. Listeners were invited to sponsor a child for R150 a month or R1 800 a year. Cape Talk Radio hoped to raise R1.2 million through the telethon, enough to support around 567 orphans for a year. But the campaign was "viral." The word spread like wildfire and around two thousand people and businesses in Cape Town called in. By the end of the day they had pledged over R3.75 million! That is enough for Ikamva Labantu and the magnificent "Mamas" we support to provide safe, nurturing homes, nutrition, school fees, books and uniforms and other daily essentials for 2,000 AIDS orphans for a full year! Both the Mayor of Cape Town, Helen Zille, and the Premier of the Western Cape, Lynne Brown, were among the many callers who offered a personal pledge of support. We thank you all from the bottom of our hearts!

To taste the flavor of this uplifting day, you can go to the website for 567 Cape Talk Radio's campaign which includes photos and audio and video clips. The spontaneous outpouring of love as thousands of Capetonians of all races, creeds and economic circumstances joined hands to help the most vulnerable members of the community gives us tremendous hope for "Ikamva labantu" — the future of the people of South Africa.

We know we don't have to tell you how HIV/AIDS continues to devastate our country, especially in the poorest townships where Ikamva Labantu operates. Today we witnessed the healing power of love as scores of our community rose to meet its challenges and support their neighbors. On behalf of all the children and vulnerable families we serve, we thank the community of Cape Town for its generous support and we hope we can continue to link arms as we tackle this urgent crisis of growing orphans in our communities.

Warmest personal regards,


Ishrene Davids
CEO Ikamva Labantu

Helen Lieberman
Founder Ikamva Labantu