By Daniëlle Gerber
Community Keepers is a non-government organisation situated in Stellenbosch working on bringing support to lower-income communities through establishing psycho-social support centres at schools. By the end of 2022, they will be established at 35 partner schools, and 2023 will see them spreading to different provinces. Community Keepers introduces a system seeking to tell the wellbeing story by destigmatising both mental health issues and seeking relevant help.
On Thursday, 13 October 2022, a Thanksgiving for different stakeholders was held at Devon Valley Primary School – one of three events commemorating the important stakeholders who make serving the community and the most vulnerable, the youth, able. Within the crowd were members of Acorn Education, a collaborative school system, Capitec and Remgro, Community Keepers donors, various school headmasters and teachers, the Community Keepers counsellors, and other guests.
A quick glance around the room would expose not only a surface-level lively chatter, but also a deep-rooted passion for Community Keepers and the work that it seeks to do. The Community Keepers Director and CEO, Gerrit Laning, expressed that it is not about ‘chasing the number’ but rather about focusing on the need within the community.
This does not, however, negate the impactful and quantitative work that Community Keepers does. End-August 2022 saw the statistics of 2 754 learners having enrolled in therapy (in-house referred to as Support Keepers). Additionally, there were a total of 39 486 learners who participated in 958 development workshops (referred to as Life Keepers). The venue of the Thanksgiving also showcased some quotes from the participants, thereby reporting on the qualitative impact on the community, amongst both the students and teachers.
Drawing from that, it was explained that Community Keepers is also actively working within the broader scope of the community to holistically address the psycho-social issues. This includes offering support to the parents and teachers within the respective schools. Additionally, with a strong emphasis on caring-for-the-carers, the counsellors also receive support, with an hour of services for every four hours that are spent serving. Supplying this scope of services also aids in the sustainability of Community Keepers’ work.
Talking to some of the counsellors and participating schools’ representatives, it was clear to deduct that Community Keepers has an overarching positive impact on the subjective wellbeing of the community. An especially powerful message came from counsellor Akhona Vuta, who expressed that their work falls within the sphere of ‘healing not fixing, because no one is broken’. This speaks to an approach of empathy when dealing with these communities.
Community Keepers is working actively within the communities that need them most, offering a holistic approach to mental wellbeing through destigmatising psycho-social support. The quantitative data speaks to the range of impact, whereas the qualitative data within the Thanksgiving hints towards the depth of the work. While prioritising the needs of the community, Community Keepers is planting the seed of hope and growing the trust of different stakeholders.
