#BigFavour: Safety and security from the angels dressed in blue
Damon Beard teams up with a local security company to make a Durban-based safe haven safe again.
Listen to the Big Favour or read the details under the podcast.
The Open Door Crisis Care Centre is a community-based, non-profit organisation (NPO) sustaining a holistic, multi-faceted, one-stop crisis and trauma centre, offering counselling, social services and support groups.
They have many years of experience in dealing with young, vulnerable pregnant women and girls and also support girls and women who have experienced gender-based violence. Their HIV programme provides primary healthcare services for people and support groups for HIV-positive people.
The Open Door Crisis Care Centre also do HIV counselling and testing (HCT), and run workshops to create awareness and educate the youth on various topics. They run training programmes for men, women, and youth who wish to address social issues in their communities, schools, and workplace, and also run courses to teach people about home-based care.
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Recently, there have been a spate of incidents with people breaking into the Centre through the roof and even the wall. With volunteers, staff, and victims going into the center on a daily basis, security is now a major concern. They have suffered loss of equipment through break-ins, had a staff member hijacked and taken hostage, as well as clients who have been attacked outside their premises.
Gregory Naidoo, the Sales Manager, and his team from Blue Security jumped at the opportunity to help. Their Blue Angels Charitable Trust is a non-profit organisation, through which they aim to reach out and support worthy NGO’s as their special way of caring and giving back to the communities.
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The Trust identifies worthy organisations like rape and trauma centers that assist crime victims as well as centers that work with previously disadvantaged women and children, and then engage with the organisations to find out their needs and ways it can financially assist to keep their doors open long term.
Blue Security will be doing the following to help the Open Door Crisis Centre:
- The entire centre will be fitted with a smart alarm system.
- Cameras will be installed with video verification in their control room.
- A mobile panic app will be given to all counsellors at The Open Door Crisis Care Centre.
The upgrading of the Open Door Crisis Care Centre security from Blue Security and the partnership forged with the BLUE ANGELS outreach will not only secure the safety of their staff and clients, but will also support their many outreach projects addressing gender-based violence, human trafficking, and child abuse.
To contact Blue Security - Phone: (031) 717 5000 or Email: [email protected]
The Open Door Crisis Care Centre (open 24 hours, 7 days a week) offers the following :
- Awareness, Training and Prevention Services
- Psycho-Social Support
- Socio-Economic Support
- Treatment-Related Services
Contact the Open Door Crisis Care Centre:
- Crisis line number: 084 409 2679
- Office hours are from 08:00 to 16:00, Monday to Friday.
- Tel: +27 31 709 2679
- Hotline: 0844 092 679
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.opendoor.org.za
- Physical Address: 7 Windsor Road, Pinetown, KwaZulu-Natal, 3610
- Postal Address: PO Box 1605, Pinetown, KwaZulu-Natal, 3600
