TREY Caterina Naidoo has been living with Addison’s disease - an uncommon, incurable illness that occurs when the body does not make enough of certain hormones. Despite this, she works to generate an income to provide for her family.
Having experienced many challenges, Naidoo was motivated to establish an organisation to help others in her community of Chatsworth.
In October last year, Naidoo established the Women's Action for New Direction, known as W. A. N. D.
“I created W.A.N.D with the vision to upskill the impoverished, to create an opportunity for change, and to initiate a change for the better. Living with an incurable and deadly disease, I still wanted to impart knowledge and empower women, men and youth using skills,” she said.
“We are a registered non-profit organisation and comprise many women. In addition to me, there is Isha Gajraj, Kurshida Kaja, Anisa Ramdeo, Ugeshini Agambaram, Sue Rasool, Razia Ebrahim, Yasmin Mohamed, Cookie Pillay and our brand ambassadors Zeeni Moseley and Leena Bachu. We currently function solely on donations and the assistance of businesses and the community.
“We are based in Montford and thus far, all of our development programmes have been held in Chatsworth. We intend to branch out in the near future. We have been involved in raising funds to purchase new school uniforms for 36 underprivileged pupils at Meadowlands Technical High School; we held a feeding scheme and family fun day at the Chatsworth stadium where we fed more than 200 people; and we upskilled 10 members with a free accredited care-giving course.”
Other W.A.N.D projects have included gender-based violence awareness programmes, an event to honour the role of men in society, and Project Greenhouse at the Cheshire Homes where they restored and created a sustainable garden for the home’s residents. They hope to introduce Project Greenhouse to local schools. The first will be Meadowlands Technical High School where they will build greenhouses with sustainable gardens.
“By changing the mindsets of men and the community on gender equality and the important roles of women within the home, community and in businesses, we believe this could improve the lives of women in every arena and build a stronger society.”
On August 20, W.A.N.D will host a Women’s Month programme to highlight and acknowledge the unsung heroes at home.
“Our intention is to show them the gratitude they deserve. Accolades will be given to women in business as well as for other achievements. We endeavour to continue hosting empowerment projects and encouraging women to become motivated to become independent and self-sufficient.”
For more information, call [email protected] or WhatsApp Naidoo on 068 386 8938 or 061 4677399.
*As South Africa marks Women’s Day on 9 August and Women’s Month, Te Post Newspaper looked at community-based organisations who dedicate their time to empowering and uplifting women at grassroots level.