Bringing light and hope to unemployed women in South Africa’s Cape Town region is what Cheryl and Dave Milligan are passionate about. That is why their organisation is called Umtha ‘ray of light’ in the local Xhosa language.
Umtha’s roots are modest. One rainy afternoon in 1991, Dave, who was unemployed, wandered into a craft shop. Picking up a few beads, he made a necklace for his wife Cheryl. Dave found new inspiration in this creativity and started making more beaded jewellery to sell in tourist areas. Before long, Cheryl joined him in the new venture and then they employed two Xhosa women to work with them. ‘As we started to see the potential for the business, God really gave us a heart for the poor and challenged us to make a contribution towards the restitution of a post-apartheid South Africa,’ says Dave.
Today Umtha employs 40 people. Cheryl explains, ‘It’s more than just production, it’s about teamwork and providing sustainable incomes, while creating jewellery of world-class quality.’
Umtha’s vision is to release the potential in the hearts and minds of South Africans, helping them to overcome poverty and deprivation. It comes to fruition in people like Tabisa, who since joining the Umtha team six years ago has excelled in learning beadwork skills. She is now both a necklace maker and the office receptionist. The work provides her with regular income as well as the support she has needed to cope with the death of her baby from pneumonia and the health consequences of having TB herself. ‘If Umtha wasn’t there, I don’t know what I would do,’ says Tabisa. Now she has new dreams for the future: ‘I would love to be married and I want to extend my house. I think it is possible – only God knows.’