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What Happens When a Child Walks Through Our Preschool Gate.
18 Years of Community Life in Philippi
For 18 years, I have worked in informal communities in Philippi, including Samora Machel and the Kosovo Informal community. What keeps me here is not just the work – it’s the people, the children, and the transformation we witness every day.
My name is Niki Kuys, and I am the Project Co-ordinator for Life Child in Philippi, Cape Town. I oversee our projects on the ground, including our Life Child Preschool and two foster homes.
I began working in Samora Machel and the Kosovo Informal community 18 years ago, and community life has left indelible memories with me. I remember boys bonding after school, playing street soccer with rocks as goalposts, and barbecue fires being lit along busy streets at sundown, selling chicken feet to hungry home-goers. These moments speak of resilience and community, but also of deep vulnerability.
Long-Term Work, Deep Challenges, and God’s Grace
The work is truly rewarding, despite the many challenges. God’s grace is always evident. Over the years, we have seen children transformed through the Life Child Preschool and our foster homes.
This past year marked a significant milestone – 10 years since Orphans Promise partnered with us, enabling the purchase, renovation, and operation of both a foster home and a preschool.
From Violence to Sanctuary
Our preschool serves children from the dire Kosovo shack community, where gun shootings (as the locals call it) are a daily or weekly occurrence.
Yet from the moment a child walks through the preschool gate, everything changes.
They enter a sanctuary, a place where they are safe, loved, seen, and well-nourished.
A Place to Discover, Grow, and Belong
Here, children discover their talents – creative, musical, and intellectual. They learn to socialise, express themselves freely, and grow into the individuals God created them to be.
They encounter Jesus in the classroom and take Him back into their homes, often encouraging family prayer and faith beyond the preschool walls. This past year alone, two graduates and one young child surrendered their hearts to Jesus.
Dignity in the Small Things
Simple things matter deeply.
The children take pride in having their own mattress for afternoon naps, a small dignity often missing at home where beds are shared by entire families.
While children receive a strong foundation, we walk alongside their families, too.
Strengthening Families for Lasting Change
Our families face food shortages, unsafe zinc structures that flood in winter, joblessness, depression, and alcoholism.
Our goal is not short-term relief, but lasting family strengthening.
Through weekly cell groups, parenting workshops, church connection, home visits, and individual counselling, we offer consistent support and a helping hand.
And we see change.
Jobs are found.
Homes are improved.
Furniture is purchased.
Dignity is restored.
We Don’t Say Goodbye
Graduation Day, when children turn six, is a powerful moment. It showcases three years of growth and preparation for the world ahead.
But we do not say goodbye.
Through children’s cell groups, Sunday church, and ongoing connection, many return by choice.
A Decade of Impact
In December 2025, we celebrated 10 years of Life Child Preschool with a Reunion Thanksgiving event.
Sixty-seven graduates, now aged between 7 and 16 years, were honoured – living proof of what long-term, consistent investment can achieve.
Walking the Journey Together
It is a privilege to be part of this work in Philippi.
And it is only possible because partners choose to walk the journey with us, one child and one family at a time.
If you are looking to partner with a work that delivers long-term impact, accountability, and real transformation, we would love to walk this journey with you. Email us at [email protected] or visit https://www.lifechild.org.za/partner/
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