The day kicked off with Gugu and Thuthu ZUMA (the president’s daughters) flying in by helicopter thanks to STARLITE aviation. They landed at the world’s first zero carbon foot print , self sufficient children’s home at around 8am.
Let Jo Davison tell the story through exerts from her recent article in THE STAR, NEWSPAPER, UK.
It’s taken a thousand days, but finally his dream of building a children’s home for orphans in the South African Valley Of A Thousand Hills has been realised.
Sheffield man Martin Downs arrived in the Aids capital of the world three years ago with nothing more than determination and a pile of suitcases.
“We arrived with nothing but plans and dreams,” admits Martin, of High Storrs.
Today, their charity Project O has received publicity and support from around the world.
Last month the charity officially launched their first purpose-built children’s home in the hills which will house six orphans and either a Government-approved house mother or a blood grandmother.
The house is being described as the world’s first totally sustainable, zero carbon footprint children’s home and its launch was attended by the daughters of South African President Jacob Zuma, along with hundreds of local tribes people and the world’s press.
“It was such a coup for us to have the president’s daughters present. Gugu and Thuthu are lovely, humble girls who were full of praise for what we are doing and pledged their continued support, ” says Martin, a keen sky-diver who last year parachuted his charity into the world record books with a publicity-generating six sky-dives over six different continents in six days.
He dived down to the crowds over an area he hopes will one day be dotted with scores of identical Project O homes, saying a few words of thanks to a man who had been so pivotal to the house’s success – his father Philip Downs, who died last December at the age of 66.
Former design technology teacher Philip had always planned to fly out to South Africa to help his son. But cancer put paid to his dream. So instead, he worked on plans for the structure from his home in Rotherham.
“Dad was a practical man, a natural builder. He came up with lots of ideas and when he was really ill, I’d sit at his bedside in the Northern General Hospital and he would be drawing plans and working out where we could put the staircases and the internal walls.
“He was having chemotherapy at the time and we were all convinced he would get better and finally make the journey.
The house his father helped to create in a land he had never set foot in, to help children he would never meet, is a lasting testimony, though.
“We call the house Ekhya Impilo, the House Of Life and it is fantastic. It has always been our dream to keep orphaned children safe, well, fed and schooled in their communities and the foster cluster home is a major step towards furthering that goal,” says Martin, 34.
“The structure is in keeping with the traditional tribal home, yet boasts scores of features that mean the children who live there can be self-sufficient.
It is structurally sound enough to last at least 100 years and uses the area’s natural resources to provide its own power and food.
“The children we select to live there will leave the only homes they have ever known, which essentially are shacks on a mountainside with no water. They will move into a home with solar-generated water and a 12-metre wind turbine powering light bulbs and a washing machine. Wireless internet will help them to do their homework and the children will be taught to grow produce, keep livestock and compost their organic waste.
