Meet Our Volunteer: Caz
Caz has been a dedicated volunteer at Mayenjane, bringing energy, passion, and kindness to our children and team.
Why She Volunteers
When asked why she gives her time, Caz says:
“Seeing the smiles, the growth, and the joy in the children’s eyes makes it all worthwhile. Every small act makes a huge difference.”
Making an Impact Together
Volunteers like Caz are at the heart of our mission. Their dedication helps ensure that every child has access to love, care, education, and opportunity.
If you are inspired by Caz’s story, there are many ways to get involved — your time, skills, and heart can change lives too.
Why did you decide to volunteer with Mayenjane?"
My mum's cousin told me about the charity as she knew I was looking to travel/volunteer in my gap year, I knew nothing about them beforehand but decided it sounded like a good opportunity."
Expectations vs Reality: considering your initial ideas and impressions, tell us how you faced your time there.
"I had been to Tanzania in Africa before, so I was basing a lot of my pre-determined ideas on that. I thought I would be living in very basic accommodation, had no idea who I was staying with really, and didn’t know what I would be doing out there. It was very much a jump into the deep end. It was also the first time I had got a long distance flight by myself so I was nervous beforehand. However, I just got involved with everything, got very close to Pastor La’Salette the senior Pastor of Christian Family Church Swaziland who hosted me and became like another Grandmother, and loved interacting with the children and helping where I could."
What kind of work were you doing there?
"I mostly did painting of the Children's homes. La’Salette likes her buildings to stand out, somewhere the children are proud to go, where it looks fun and inviting, but also safe. I also had raised money to go towards Mayenjane Children's home itself, so seeing it being built, and then the second time the children moving in was amazing."
Did you learn any new skills from the experience and what did you get out of the experience on a more personal level?
"I learnt to be a lot more confident, not to notice a lot of the pre-conceived ideas about South Africa & Swaziland and just to embrace the experience. I also had to deal with a lot of stronger opinions and views on life that my own, and that was sometimes challenging but you had to accept that it is a different world to your own."
How has the experience made a difference to how you live and work in the UK?
"I would say it encouraged me to do more volunteering. At university I was in charge of recruiting and organising a team of students to go to Uganda and volunteer out there for a month. I love going back to Africa, and people able to help others less fortunate."
What advice would you give to anyone considering volunteering?
"DO IT! You feel great about it, you’re making a difference and people will be forever grateful."
What was your biggest takeaway from the trip?
"Confidence, not that I wasn’t before, but I was more encouraged to try things I hadn’t done before."