Happiness Makhatini, 45

Married mother of two: 26 & 18 with one grandchild

Lives in Delft, Cape Town

Before I joined TCB I cried a lot. My husband was so abusive, but I didn’t know where to go for help. I had nothing. I didn’t have a job so I had to beg from my husband, even if he has done me wrong. I had nowhere to go. I had no one else who could feed myself and my kids. 

It was always my dream to have my own thing. I grew up in a home where my grandmother would plant potatoes and sell them. I wanted to finish my studies, I wanted to go to varsity but I couldn’t because my grandmother grew old and had no money. 

I lost hope before I came here, because I couldn’t provide.

I didn’t think my kids would make it to high school, because it was

so hard. I kept on pushing and one day everything just changed.

Now I can afford to take them to school, to pay whatever my kids need, especially for their education. 

I’m proud because I made it. Some women don’t make it, they

decide to kill themselves, or drink too much and I don’t blame them. They needed someone to talk sense to them, I was lucky because someone came for me.