For many, it is the first and only proper meal that they receive in a week.

The beneficiaries of this meal, sponsored by Meals on Wheels in Makhado (Louis Trichardt), are all toddlers, some of them still in diapers.

The funding for this project is scant and with the cruel economic situation that they have to cope with, Meals on Wheels' manager, Ms Karien Honeycomb, finds herself relying on private donations more and more. But even these are scarce.

Honeycomb explained that even though Meals on Wheels is a welfare service aimed at helping the elderly, she decided to rather focus on schools, due to teetering food donations.

During a visit to some of the 20 rural pre-primary schools that they visit weekly, the Zoutpansberger experienced the dire circumstances of these schools firsthand.

On Thursday, 30 August, three schools, namely Makhita, Madaheni and Christ the King, in the Kutama area were visited. On a good day, each school accommodates between 30 and 50 children. These schools receive no government help or grants and were instituted to help mothers who have to travel far for employment.

Conditions at most schools are miserable at best. While some are operated from private homes, some only consist of one-roomed buildings. Toilet facilities at some of the schools fill one with horror. One school only had a hole in the ground for a toilet.

Smiling children still come running, however, when the Meals on Wheels team pulls up at a school. Increased funding, in the form of mealie meal or vegetables, will enable the team to continue with their projects.

For more information, Honeycomb can be contacted at Tel 072 177 3286.