Growing Hope

Formerly The Rand Epileptic Employment Association,REEAFoundation a facility inCraighallPark, Johannesburg, caring for people suffering from epilepsy or mild neurological disorders has evolved into a multifacetedcentrethat serves the local community in several uplifting ways

- Patience Gumbo-Chimbetete

Established in 1935, the Foundation boasts a tract of farmland that houses small businesses and projects like a horse stable, bookshop, second-hand shop and car wash, as well as a second property a few blocks away that is home to the patients. The REEA Foundation has been disseminating information about the disorder on International Epilepsy Day – celebrated in over 120 countries on the second Monday in February every year – as well as on Purple Day – an international grassroots effort aimed at raising awareness on epilepsy – on 26 March. Thanks to their efforts, there has been a great change in the general public’s understanding of epilepsy. “The biggest misperceptions people have about the disorder are that sufferers are dangerous and unintelligent, and that they cannot function well in society. However, that is not the case,” REEA Foundation chairman, Kevin Collins, shares. “For example, one of our residents, Cedric Castle, runs his own car wash on the premises, and some of our other residents work in the second-hand shop and bookshop while others are employed elsewhere,” he adds.