The Carpenter’s Shop, a well-known Cape Town institution founded in 1981 to help people living on the street cope with their daily challenges, is changing its name to better reflect its new role.
Now called The Hope Exchange, the non-profit organisation (NPO) – one of the Cape Town Central City Improvement District’s (CT CCID) partners – was initially established to provide training in carpentry to homeless people to enable them to learn a skill and earn an income.
After a while, the NPO began providing more comprehensive services to the homeless as their needs grew and their numbers increased. With the closure over time of the carpentry workshop, the organisation started a charity shop and a car wash.
“The time has come for our name to represent what we do and the change we dream of,” says The Hope Exchange director, Peter Solomon.
HUMBLE BEGINNINGS
The NPO was founded 38 years ago by Geoff Burton, a Cape Town businessman who owned a Christian restaurant in the Central City with two partners. With an increasing number of homeless people arriving on their doorstep, they realised there was a need for a place that could offer them a refuge.
They soon located vacant premises in Roeland Street which had been standing empty for five years. The building had been left in a trust by Lady Catharine Bell in 1873 for the purpose of creating “a school of industry”. Geoff contacted the trustees and established The Carpenter’s Shop in line with Lady Catharine’s wishes.
A BEACON OF HOPE
While it no longer trains people to learn a skill, the NPO remains a beacon of hope for people living on the streets in downtown Cape Town. “We provide the homeless, our clients, with the opportunity to wash, clean their clothes, get a meal, get clinic care and social support,” says Peter. “Although these services are basic, it gives us the opportunity to connect and build relationships, and in turn, gives our clients confidence to face the world with dignity in an effort to change their lives.”
Pat Eddy, CT CCID manager of Social Development, says The Hope Exchange is a welcoming place for people living on the streets of the CBD. “Its offering of basic services like ablution facilities, food and, where necessary, clothing affords the individual the opportunity to face the day with restored confidence and to further benefit from counselling and other social work services,” she says.
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
The new name means exactly what it says, Peter explains. “The Hope Exchange is a refuge, a place where the homeless come to exchange life on the streets for a sense of hope and the promise of a better tomorrow.”
Peter acknowledges that they are not able to help everyone, but through their services they have touched the lives of 2 281 people over the past year.
The new logo has interlaced letters that represent the ongoing connection the organisation creates between the community and those less fortunate. The colour yellow was chosen as it represents “sunshine, optimism and energy while encouraging communication and building confidence”.
“These are all values that we as an organisation believe in and encourage in our clients,” Peter says.
Image: The Hope Exchange