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Home adopted as deserving cause

Nthabisang Moreosele

Nthabisang Moreosele

Mama Angel made a brisk start to the new year by presenting groceries and nappies to the Princess Alice Adoption Home in Westcliff, Johannesburg.

The home was named after Princess Alice, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria.

The late 1980s saw the face of adoptions changing, with a huge decline in white babies available for adoption as many people were going the private adoption route.

However, there was an increasing number of babies from other racial groups requiring care, many of whom were abandoned kids.

Last year, 63 babies and 16 moms were accommodated at the home. What has changed now is that many babies spend much more time there as they often have health problems.

Last year, the Princess Alice Adoption Home also became an antiretroviral treatment site for those babies needing treatment.

The pregnant girls who are accommodated at the home are usually destitute and Princess Alice has several skills projects to empower them for life outside the home.

This is in line with the secondary function of the centre. The girls stay there while waiting for their babies to be born, then they can either keep their babies or give them up for adoption.

Volunteers provide a vital service to the babies by helping to stimulate them and teach them interactive skills.

There is a list of professional volunteers who provide medical and physiotherapy services. Red Cross students also help with baby care tasks.

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