The First Four.
These four dolls were sewn by the hands of Kate. They were made in the image of four specific children, from different backgrounds and living under circumstances that are not always understandable by the Western mind. The whole purpose behind their manufacture was to sell the concept of the Ragdoll Initiative to Rearabilwe.
You will recognise this little fellow as Tsepo the First. Tsepo (on the right) is in his late teens and was orphaned in 2000 when his mother died from what was believed to have been cancer. His aunt (mother's sister) took Tsepo and his youndger brother, Kamagelo, under her wing and into her already overflowing home, where she cares for a total of nine children. Tsepo has just started working and has become the proud father of a young boy.
Lebo (left) is a young lady that is currently in her last year at school. She is the daughter of Tsepo's aunt and a mother as well to a 18 months old baby girl. They are both healthy although the baby has a severe squint that requires surgery. Lebo is studying hard and attends extra lessons over the weekend to ensure her success at the end of the year.
Thembi (right) is a three year old little girl that was adopted by a couple that live in Finland. She was born to Clara only two moths after Clara's mom died from AIDS. Both Clara and Thembi have been tested and are free from HIV. According to the latest correspondence, Thembi has adjusted well even though her adopted parents have divorced.
Thabang, Lebo and Tsepo live in the same household. Thabang (left) is the grandson to Tsepo's aunt and is currently in grade 7 for the second time round. He is a very keen cricket player and spends almost every weekend practicing at a local club. When his uncle (Lebo's brother) died from AIDS 5 years ago, Thabang was deeply affected and is slowly coming to terms with the loss of his only male role model.The Developments.
The aim was to produce 200 dressed and decorated dolls by end March - the actual dolls have already been made through the help of a group of ladies that belong to a local bookclub. The design used was simple and unconplicated, making the manufacturing process reasonably easy. It is the details that caused many sleepless nights and brought about the decision to turn these intitial 200 dolls into the Caregivers themselves. Keep your eye on this blog because some of the ladies will present themselves to you real soon.
