New campus opens near Johannesburg to provide life-affirming support and resources to vulnerable families in need

Thanks to the generous support of our giving family through Demi’s 28th Birthday ‘Everlasting Impact’ Campaign in June 2023, we were able to open the TTF Impact Campus near Johannesburg, South Africa, to rescue babies, educate children, and empower vulnerable mothers and families in desperate need.  

The new TTF Impact Campus—which consists of a school, counseling center, and baby safe—will help address and combat the cycles of poverty and desperation facing many families in South Africa while aiding the country’s baby abandonment crisis.

THE PROBLEMS: BABY ABANDONMENT AND CYCLES OF POVERTY

It’s estimated that three infants are abandoned every single day in Johannesburg—on the side of the road, in dumpsters, in sewers, and even in toilets. 

Many times, people don’t know that a baby has been abandoned until it’s too late.  

The baby abandonment crisis is a tragic symptom of poverty, lack of resources and education, and desperation. Many families living in South Africa struggle to provide for basic needs like food and shelter. In some cases, mothers desperately feel they have no choice but to abandon their precious babies. 

After learning about the heartbreaking statistics of baby abandonment, we knew we had to do something to help.

In 2020, we partnered with Impact Africa, an amazing organization on the ground in Johannesburg, South Africa, working to prevent baby abandonment and empower expectant mothers who may have unplanned or unwanted pregnancies. Alongside Impact Africa, TTF Impact Baby Rescue was created, providing life-saving alternatives to prevent and fight against the crisis of baby abandonment in South Africa. As we started opening additional baby safes and TTF Promise Homes for rescued babies, other root issues and contributing factors behind the crisis became illuminated.

While we were so grateful to be providing safety, loving care, and a home for abandoned babies, we realized it wasn't enough. We also needed to address the root issues and empower vulnerable families to prevent abandonment in the first place.  

“We want to be able to be proactive by empowering and equipping families to be able to care for their children,” Demi Tebow said during her visit to the TTF Impact Campus in January 2024.

In one community just outside of Johannesburg, we found that many parents were struggling to provide, and their children didn’t have access to education. Many of the families in this community were immigrants and lacked proper documentation, resources, and the ability to send their children to school. 

Limited school options in the community, coupled with the costs of transportation to schools in neighboring communities, created significant barriers to education. With parents having to work outside of the home to provide, this meant young children were often left at home unattended and increasingly vulnerable to abuse, danger, and negative influences.  

This crucial unmet need in this community led us to establish our TTF Impact Campus—complete with a school, counseling center, and baby safe—in the heart of the community to serve as a beacon of light and hope to vulnerable families.

A LOOK INTO THE NEW TTF IMPACT CAMPUS 

School:  

We know that education is a huge component in creating opportunity and a brighter future for children stuck in the cycle of poverty. In addition to resources for mothers and babies, our TTF Impact Campus has a school that will provide an education and a haven for as many as 200+ children each year!  

This opportunity for high-quality education will significantly lessen the potential for these precious children to be hungry, abused, neglected, or trafficked. Parents can work to provide for their families with greater peace of mind, knowing their children are safe, learning, and being nurtured at school. Being at school also ensures children get a meal at least five days a week—meals they may not otherwise have at home.  

At school, children gain more than education, nutrition, and knowledge; they gain hope for a brighter future for themselves and their families. The school will have ten classrooms in total—including classrooms for grades 1, 2, and 3 and a large classroom for students with special needs.

Counseling Center:  

The purpose of this counseling center is to engage, equip, and empower expectant young mothers who have an unplanned or unwanted pregnancy with resources and life-saving alternatives to abandonment. 

The counseling center also provides young mothers and fathers with prenatal, postnatal, and parental counseling and training to empower them to care for the children God has blessed them with. Through this kind of interventional support, we can come alongside parents in times of crisis and walk with them as they value, love, and nurture their babies.  

In addition, the Impact Baby Rescue Team regularly goes into the broader community with educational materials and brochures, engaging in conversations with locals and raising awareness of the life-affirming resources and support available at the TTF Impact Campus. 

Baby Safe:  

As a last resort, there is a baby safe located on our TTF Impact Campus where mothers can safely and anonymously surrender their babies to the incredible Impact Baby Rescue Team who will provide around-the-clock care to these precious image-bearers as they work to reunify them with their family or get them ready for adoption. 

When a baby is rescued, the Impact Baby Rescue Team immediately works with all local authorities, police, child welfare, and government agencies to ensure all safety and legal procedures are followed and the babies receive the best care possible. 

A baby safe provides a life-saving alternative for mothers choosing to surrender their babies when they feel like they don’t have any other options. If a parent is unable to care for or raise their baby, we want to provide a way for them to choose life for their child, and a baby safe gives them that option. The baby safe is so important because, for many babies, it could mean life, growing up, getting an education, and living out God’s purpose for their lives.  

Rescued babies are brought to one of our four TTF Promise Homes in and around Johannesburg, where they are loved and cared for by dedicated caregivers 24/7. At our Promise Homes, babies receive loving care, nutrition, health care, and the opportunity to find a forever family. So far, 36 babies have already been adopted, and 17 are currently being cared for.

HOPE FOR THE FUTURE  

We're incredibly grateful that we get to work alongside our Ministry Partner, Impact Africa, to provide hope and a future for vulnerable families in South Africa who lack the necessary resources and support while preventing precious babies from being abandoned.  

“Thank you for believing with us that we can bring Everlasting Impact to children and families vulnerable to abuse, neglect, or abandonment in Johannesburg, South Africa. Our prayer is that this campus will be a beacon of hope for so many moms who feel they have no other choice. Because of you, they will have a place of refuge and light," Demi Tebow said.

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