Blog

The Connect-123 office and many of our international interns’ apartments boast some of the best views of Table Mountain, that magical towering presence that presides over this beautiful city of Cape Town. The New 7 Wonders Foundation is taking international votes to nominate the New 7 Wonders of the World with the philosophy that “Our […]

The Child Life Program being run by Connect-123 at the Red Cross Children’s Hospital in Cape Town, reached new heights a the end of 2009 when a group of 12 volunteers from Ohio University provided their much needed services to patients and their families at the hospital during their winter vacation. Having a large number […]

The Connect-123 team tackled turkey stuffing and roasting in the name of Thanksgiving yesterday.  Two South Africans, one Irish, one English, & two turkeys! We filled the Perspectives apartment building, where the majority of our interns and volunteers stay, with smells of delicious roast turkey, attracting some curious interns who sniffed us out! We then […]

Cape Town with a population of over 4 million people has a cosmopolitan cultural mix which has been influenced over the years by the Dutch, French and British along with a significant influence coming from the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Originally established as a refreshment station by the Dutch East India Company in the […]

This week saw the publication of a list of the top 200 universities in the world according to the Higher Education Supplement of London-based newspaper The Times. The University of Cape Town (UCT) has moved up 33 places from its 2008 ranking to join the 150 best universities in the world. The four main criteria […]

Since May 2008, great strides have been made in the effort to pilot child life services at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital (RCCH) in Cape Town, South Africa.  Caroline Hargrave, Child Life Program Director appointed through Connect-123, has been at RCCH since February 2009 leading the pilot program. Additionally, four child life specialists […]

Connect-123 is assisting the largest paediatric hospital in South Africa to institute a Child Life Specialist program, an integrated child health delivery system which has the potential to greatly enhance the paediatric health care services offered at the hospital. Child Life Specialists use therapeutic and recreational play in order to reduce the fears and fantasies […]

As part of their internship, five Connect-123 volunteers created a Youth Leadership Through Photography project at Nazeema Isaacs Library in Khayelitsha in July 2006. This project continues to grow yearly with the valuable assistance of Connect-123 interns. The project involved fund-raising, teaching 125 students from Khayelitsha and Nyanga to use digital cameras, working with the […]