Tafadzwa Mukozho
BY NYARADZO CHITUNGO
Every Sunday at 2pm, on 9th Avenue and George Silundika Street in Bulawayo City centre, a group of four men prepare and serve hot meals for the disadvantaged members of the community.
The quartet known as Helping the Homeless, consists of Tafadzwa Mukozho, the leader and founder, Tinotenda Mudarikwa, Trevor Mhlanga and one who prefers anonymity, have been feeding the homeless community in Bulawayo since June 2023.
Tafadzwa Mukozho, reveals that his passion was stirred up by his upbringing which fostered a sense of compassion and charitable deeds.
Mukozho credits the BI Phakati Foundation as the source of his inspiration.
“I was inspired by BI Phakati Foundation which has assisted a lot of people in the streets. “They have put smiles on the faces of many and that is what we are doing as a group. We must depend on each other and have the spirit of Ubuntu and the love of God,” he says.
The Helping the Homeless group feeds 100 people every Sunday and wish to expand to daily meals in the future.
They further revealed that they receive donations from well-wishers but most of the times they fork out cash from their own pockets to keep the food program in motion.
“If funds permit, we wish to expand to preparing meals on a daily basis however, financial constraints seem to be our Achilles heel,” Mukozho explained.
Tafadzwa Mukozho dishes the meals
The group has previously collaborated with Nozizwe Mother of All Nations Organisation and are looking forward to collaborating with other organisations.
“We have previously collaborated with Nozizwe Mother of All Nations Organisation and our sight is set on engaging various stakeholders and collaborating with other organisations so as to realise the change we want in our society,” he revealed.
Beyond preparing meals, the group has gone a step further in donating school uniforms to needy girls after interaction with members of the community.
Additionally, they have donated clothes to Ngozi Mine and Queen Elizabeth Children’s home where they celebrate every child’s birthday with a cake.
In the future, the group plans to establish a vocational training center for the disadvantaged with the intent of empowering them financially as they are often excluded in empowerment programs.
“We want to establish a vocational training centre for them where we impart basic life skills such as woodwork, crotcheting, baking and it is sad to note that they are not included in empowerment programs. We need to change the narrative.” he said.
