Project to protect pensioners against alcohol abuse

Mercy Old Age Home Community Project has been established to tackle alcohol abuse by the elderly. According to project manager Jack Moseamedi, many of the elderly residents of Topanama Village outside Tzaneen indulge excessively in alcohol because they have nothing to keep them busy.

“There are no activities around for old people and there is no project in the community that caters for them, which is why we established this one,” said Moseamedi.

Dealing with daily stress

The project, which was launched in December, seeks to protect the elderly by educating them about their roles, rights and responsibilities and also by providing them with meaningful and productive activities.

“This project is not only going to assist the elderly, it will also assist the youth. The elderly have a fountain of wisdom about the indigenous ways of doing things, which they can pass on to the younger generation,” he said.

Moseamedi said the project teaches elderly to sew, small scale farming and offers other activities. He said the project had 75 new members and he hoped numbers would increase.

One of the members, 78-year-old Rosina Ramaila, said she appreciated the initiative and believed it would help pensioners deal with daily stress and give them something worth waking up for.

“It will keep us busy and we won’t be sitting at home and stressed. We will be keeping each other company and reminiscing about old times,” said Ramaila.

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