Lost Children, Finding their way Home

Here, children receive the care and protection they need before it’s safe to return home, or until a loving home is found. Moments like this — full of joy, celebration, and belonging — are possible because of people like you.

Today, millions of children across South Africa are living without one or both parents. Some are doing their best to survive in child-headed households, siblings suddenly carrying adult responsibilities far too soon.

One family like this came to Setshabelo Family and Child Services (SFCS), like so many others, through a simple phone call.

After the sudden loss of both parents, a young woman became responsible for her younger sister and little brother. One day, she heard a SFCS social worker speaking on the radio about available support.

Overwhelmed and afraid, she picked up the phone. She didn’t call for herself. She called for her siblings, asking about our Child and Youth Care Centers. Because of your generosity, her call was answered, and help came quickly.

Her younger brother and sister were welcomed into an SFCS-trained foster family, a temporary place of safety where healing could begin. Although their older sister had aged out of formal care, she was not left behind. She was invited to stay in the home as well, remaining closely involved in their lives. She continued to be their anchor.

Something beautiful happened next, because of you. The foster mother opened her heart fully to the children and is now pursuing formal adoption.

In a society where adoption still carries deep stigma, the presence of encompassKids, and your support, helps shift what families believe is possible. Three siblings, once facing an uncertain future, now share a safe, permanent home… together.

And the eldest sister? She is pursuing a degree in Education, with hopes of one day helping other vulnerable children find the support she once needed.

This is what your generosity does.

It gives families time to heal. It keeps siblings together. It turns crisis into stability, and stability into hope.

Thank you for making stories like this possible.