Melissah is a proud and strong woman. She’s not one to cast blame or act like the victim.

We visited her this week and she said, ” I blame myself, it was like I had 5 kids instead of 4, and the more I pushed for him to grab opportunities he had, the worse it got. He never contributed, he didn’t help with the family and kids, and he was very upset with the idea of me starting the second hand business a few years ago.

I’ve been told by friends that me wanting to help and save others was a symptom of trying to save myself and fix my situation. I couldn’t fix my situation, and so all the other things I did – like helping Kwenza and taking in the kids – although I really did want to help, was also a way for me to feel better about my own troubles. I told Justin that I was taking the kids back to Zim.

He didn’t like it, but he didn’t fight for them or offer to help either and he had moved out. He has another woman who is having his baby.

I came back to Joburg last month after making sure the kids were settled. Justin saw me on a street corner in Diepsloot where I was talking to someone and he attacked me. He grabbed a rock and hit me across the head. I had to have stitches. I’ve gone to the police to report it.

I’m starting all over again now by myself. I’m working and studying online for a global company that has people working to do ancestry audits. We get assigned projects where we need to go through scanned documents like birth certificates and marriage certificates and check the names and whether they correspond to the database. The work assigned is in steps and should take 8 hours but it often takes longer with internet connectivity. There are more people that are also assigned the same project so they can get accurate results.

I get paid $200 US per month and it costs $10 to transfer that to rands . It’s a work/study deal. I work the 8 hours and then do a couple of hours of study as well per day. With moving the kids and being in Zim I didn’t do well on my last interview and assessment of work and they cut my hours. Connectivity was bad and data very expensive in Zim so a lot of my earnings were taken by that.

Here in Joburg it’s cheaper to be online, but still takes a chunk of my salary. I found this room I’m renting at R1100 a month and I’m starting from scratch again. I now have more time with the kids in Zim, but it’s lonely and I’m worried about end of July when my contract ends.

I’m worried it won’t be renewed.

How you can help get Melissah back on her feet

Melissah’s phone number is 061 940 6766.

1. Send her some data for work . She has a small mtn data router – or money for data so she does’t get it all at once and it expires in a month.
   Her data sim is 07381690042

2. With her contract end nearing, is there anyone with online work, or admin or office work that would give Melissah a chance? She’s a super quick learner.
3. Some groceries , a Pick and Pay or checkers voucher to get some essentials , she’s got empty shelves at the moment/
4. Transport sponsorship: Someone has kindly offered Melissah space in their offices in Bryanston—a desk, internet, lunch, coffee, and, just as important, a sense of community.
   The only barrier is transport. It costs around R50 a day, and if someone is able to sponsor a month’s worth (R1000), it would make a world of difference by giving her a consistent work environment and support network.