As a Pastor and the Co-ordinator of Community Outreach at PEN I would like to introduce you to the work this faith based organization does in the inner city of Pretoria.
The inner city of Pretoria is a fast growing and densely populated area. Hundreds of people flock from rural areas to the city with the dream of setting up a better life than they are used to. Sadly, reality is met when they end up in the inner city, sharing a small one room flat with ten or more people, where there are very little opportunities and sometimes little food to eat. Many times the reality is that of living on the streets looking for a place to stay and lay your head. In many cases it is often the women and children who suffer the most.
It is in these circumstances that PEN works towards bettering the lives of the people of the inner city of Pretoria and to offer a vision of what a city could be to its inhabitants, if there was a caring and loving community at its centre.
PEN has four main service areas that are based on their vision for the inner city:
PEN is a servant in the community:
Any community based approach must involve providing for the basic needs of the people. PEN assists with skills training, provision of housing, food, clothes, education, heaslth care, therapeutic and social services.
PEN is part of the community:
PEN sees itself as part of a just and loving community. PEN established educational and residential communities where care of all facets of the person is taken. PEN has the Sediba Hope Medical centre caring for homeless people's basic medical needs as well. Sediba Hope is unique in the sense that home based care for HIV/AIDS homeless people takes place on the streets because that is unfortunately where their "homes" are.
PEN is a voice in and for the community:
PEN speaks on behalf of the community about unjust happenings in the community and spreads the word of God in weekly care groups and fellowships for children, teenagers and also adults. There is ample opportunity for one to one engagements.
PEN practices sound stewardship principles:
PEN believes that practicing sound stewardship principles is of utmost importance; working responsibly and ethically with resources at PEN's disposal to serve and uplift the community is a value intertwined throughout PEN.
PEN's supporters and donors are located across South Africa and we are priveledged to have supporters living abroad as well.
PEN's main focus and spending of resources is aimed and used for social, socio-economic upliftment and education, but with emphasis on caring for the individual in total.
To accomplish these service areas PEN has a number of programmes.
The following core values are practiced in PEN, we:
love God as Creator, Saviour and Sustainer of our lives with our whole being and our fellow human beings, inspired by the love of Jesus Christ.
live and work as a dynamic team focused on relationships and the well-being of people.
partner with communities under which we serve in a priestly and prophetic manner.
are accountable for what we do with God's belongings and creation.