Pathways to Dignity, Stability and Self-Sufficiency
When Dignity Is Restored, Possibility Returns.
Her Voice Foundation NPC is a South African nonprofit company that develops, leads and accounts for funded programmes serving women, girls, unemployed graduates and families.
Through personal and leadership development, entrepreneurship, employability, community support and restorative initiatives, we create practical pathways that strengthen capacity, expand access to opportunity, support economic participation and help people rebuild stability.
Registered Nonprofit Company | Registration No. 2014/107452/08 | South Africa
About the Foundation
From Potential to Participation. From Disruption to Stability.
Her Voice Foundation NPC exists to create practical pathways forward for women, girls, unemployed graduates and families.
Some of the people we serve have qualifications, ideas and potential but lack the structured support, experience, networks or opportunities required to participate meaningfully in society and the economy.
Others are navigating circumstances such as the death of a child, hidden homelessness, displacement or disrupted safety and dignity.
These experiences are different, but each can interrupt a person’s ability to move forward.
The Foundation develops and leads funded programmes that respond through two complementary areas of work.
Our Two Areas of Work
01
Development and Economic Participation
We create and lead programmes that help women, girls and unemployed graduates strengthen their personal, professional and enterprise capacity.
personal and leadership development;
entrepreneurship and enterprise support;
employability and workplace readiness;
mentorship and guided development;
digital and self-directed learning;
access to networks and opportunities; and
pathways into employment, enterprise or further development.
The Foundation may engage ATA Training Academy or another specialist partner to provide technical training and learning delivery while retaining leadership and accountability for the funded programme.
02
Restoration and Stability
We develop focused responses for people whose dignity or stability has been disrupted by a particular life circumstance.
parents who have experienced the death of a child;
selected women and families experiencing hidden homelessness, displacement or serious housing instability; and
girls whose safety, dignity, stability or healthy development has been disrupted.
The nature of the support is determined by the purpose, criteria and resources of each programme.
How We Work
Defined needs. Structured responses. Accountable delivery.
identifies a defined social or developmental need;
designs an appropriate programme response;
mobilises funding and institutional partnerships;
appoints or engages specialist delivery partners where required;
oversees implementation and beneficiary support;
monitors outputs, outcomes and risks; and
remains accountable to funders, partners and participants.
The Foundation does not assume that every person requires the same intervention. It creates defined pathways that respond to where people are—and help them move towards greater dignity, capacity, stability and self-sufficiency.
Our History
From Community Work to Funded Programme Leadership
Her Voice Foundation NPC was established in 2014 as the nonprofit vehicle through which Her Voice could serve women, girls, families and communities.
The Foundation’s early work was direct and community-based. It included engagement with girls and women through schools, mentorship, gatherings, orphanage support, informal-settlement outreach and other community-development activities.
Over time, the Foundation’s work expanded from individual community interventions into the development and leadership of structured programmes addressing women’s development, entrepreneurship, graduate economic participation and family restoration.
2014
The Foundation Is Established
Her Voice Foundation was registered as a South African nonprofit company.
Registered name: Her Voice Foundation NPC
Registration number: 2014/107452/08
The Foundation created a formal institutional vehicle through which Her Voice could mobilise resources, develop partnerships and implement programmes for women, girls, families and communities.
The Early Years
Direct Community Work
The Foundation began by meeting women and girls within their existing environments.
Its activities included school and community engagements, mentorship, women’s gatherings and direct support for girls in an orphanage and informal settlement.
These experiences established an important principle: programmes must respond to people’s actual circumstances rather than assuming that every woman, girl or family requires the same intervention.
Foundation community work — girls at an orphanageFoundation community work — girls in an informal settlement
A Deepening Mandate
Restoration and Stability
Lived experiences of child loss, displacement, hidden homelessness and rebuilding deepened the Foundation’s understanding of dignity and stability.
This informed the development of focused restorative initiatives, including Grieving With Hope and the Mpho Yarona Project.
2025
Female Foundry
In 2025, Her Voice Foundation led Female Foundry, a six-month entrepreneurship-development programme for 50 women in the Free State.
The programme combined personal development, entrepreneurship training, business development, mentorship and a final Pitch Day.
ATA Training Academy supported the specialist training and enterprise-development components. Her Voice Foundation remained the lead programme entity.
Female Foundry demonstrated the Foundation’s ability to move beyond once-off community activities and lead a structured, outcome-oriented development programme.
Verified outcomes included:
50 women participating;
35 businesses launched; and
8 jobs created.
Female Foundry | Free State | 2025
Female Foundry | Free State | 2025
The Foundation Today
Two Complementary Portfolios
Her Voice Foundation now works across two complementary portfolios:
development and economic participation; and
restoration and stability.
Its history demonstrates a progression from direct community engagement to the design and leadership of structured programmes, institutional partnerships and measurable development pathways.
The Foundation’s work has grown in scale and structure, but its central commitment remains the same: creating practical pathways through which women, girls, unemployed graduates and families can move towards dignity, stability and self-sufficiency.
The Challenge
The Gap Is Often Not Potential. It Is Access.
Women, girls, unemployed graduates and families do not experience one uniform challenge.
Some have qualifications, ideas, ambition and the willingness to work, but lack access to structured development, practical experience, business support, networks or economic opportunities.
Others are navigating grief, homelessness, displacement or circumstances that have disrupted their safety, dignity and stability.
These realities require different responses. What connects them is the need for a practical pathway between a person’s current circumstances and the future she or her family is working towards.
The Realities We Address
01
Potential Without Developmental Opportunity
Women and girls may have ability, ambition and ideas without access to the structured development, mentorship, resources or relationships required to strengthen that potential. Without an appropriate pathway, potential can remain present but underdeveloped.
02
Qualifications Without Economic Participation
Many unemployed graduates have completed tertiary qualifications but remain unable to move successfully into employment, enterprise or sustainable economic activity. The transition from qualification to participation may be interrupted by limited work experience, weak professional networks, inadequate workplace preparation and restricted access to opportunity.
03
Life Disruption and Family Instability
Progress can also be interrupted by circumstances that require a restorative rather than purely developmental response.
parents living with the death of a child;
selected women and families experiencing hidden homelessness, displacement or serious housing instability; and
girls whose safety, dignity, stability or healthy development has been disrupted.
In these circumstances, the immediate priority may be to restore dignity and stability before longer-term participation becomes possible.
The Foundation responds to both sides of the challenge: Potential that needs a pathway—and disruption that requires restoration.
The Foundation’s Response
Programmes matched to the nature of the need.
personal and leadership development;
employability and workplace-readiness interventions;
entrepreneurship and enterprise development;
mentorship and guided learning;
community-based support;
restorative intervention;
institutional partnerships; and
access to further opportunities.
Where specialist training is required, the Foundation may engage ATA Training Academy or another technical partner while retaining programme leadership, governance and accountability.
The objective is not activity for its own sake. It is to create credible pathways through which potential can be developed, opportunity accessed and stability rebuilt.
Our Focus Areas
Where We Concentrate Our Work
Her Voice Foundation develops and leads programmes within four connected areas.
Programmes may address one focus area or combine several areas, depending on the identified need, intended beneficiaries, funding opportunity and programme outcomes.
Not every programme operates continuously. Some are delivered in defined funding cycles, while others form part of the Foundation’s funding and partnership pipeline.
01
Women and Girls’ Development
We develop programmes that strengthen the personal, social and leadership capacity of women and girls.
personal and leadership development;
mentorship and guided learning;
confidence, agency and decision-making;
life and transition skills;
community-based development;
access to positive support relationships;
development opportunities for teenage girls and young women; and
initiatives responding to the circumstances of women and girls in particular communities.
The Foundation’s historical work with girls in schools, an orphanage and an informal settlement forms part of this focus area.
Intended outcome
Women and girls with strengthened capacity, greater agency and improved access to developmental opportunities.
02
Graduate Development and Economic Participation
We develop and lead programmes for unemployed female graduates from universities, universities of technology and TVET colleges.
employability and workplace readiness;
professional behaviour and communication;
digital and self-directed learning;
mentorship and career guidance;
work-experience preparation;
employer and opportunity exposure;
leadership and personal effectiveness;
entrepreneurship as an alternative pathway; and
transition into employment, enterprise or further development.
Where specialist training is required, ATA Training Academy may provide curriculum, facilitation, LMS and employability support while Her Voice Foundation remains the lead programme entity.
Intended outcome
Unemployed female graduates with strengthened readiness and clearer pathways towards employment, enterprise or further development.
03
Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development
We create programmes that help women move from an idea, skill or survivalist activity towards more structured and sustainable enterprise participation.
entrepreneurial mindset and personal development;
business-model development;
business compliance and operational foundations;
branding, marketing and customer development;
pricing and sales;
financial understanding;
mentorship and business guidance;
market and pitching opportunities; and
pathways towards business growth and job creation.
Delivered programme: Female Foundry | Free State | 2025. Female Foundry was a six-month entrepreneurship-development programme led by Her Voice Foundation for 50 women. Verified outcomes included: 35 businesses launched; and 8 jobs created. ATA Training Academy supported the specialist training and enterprise-development components.
Intended outcome
Women with strengthened enterprise capability and improved ability to establish, formalise or grow sustainable economic activity.
04
Family and Community Restoration
We develop focused initiatives for parents, girls and selected families whose dignity or stability has been disrupted by a particular life circumstance.
support for mothers who have experienced the death of a child;
case-based support for selected women and families experiencing hidden homelessness, displacement or serious housing instability;
restorative support for girls whose safety, dignity, stability or healthy development has been disrupted; and
community-based initiatives responding to clearly identified restorative needs.
Programme expressions: Grieving With Hope; Mpho Yarona Project; Foundation community initiatives for girls.
Intended outcome
Parents, girls and families supported to move from disruption towards renewed dignity, greater stability and strengthened self-sufficiency.
How Programmes Are Activated
A focus area does not automatically mean that assistance is continuously available. Programmes are activated according to:
confirmed funding or commissioning;
clearly defined beneficiary criteria;
available implementation capacity;
appropriate institutional and community partnerships;
safeguarding requirements; and
the specific scope and duration of each programme.
Her Voice Foundation develops and leads programmes for women, girls, unemployed graduates and families.
The Foundation maintains restorative initiatives that are activated according to available resources, defined criteria and partnership capacity.
Development and Economic-Participation Programmes
01
Free State
Female Foundry
Audience
Unemployed female graduates translating their qualifications into businesses.
Format
Six-month entrepreneurship-development programme
Female Foundry was designed to help unemployed female graduates to use their qualifications to move from ideas, skills and early-stage economic activity towards more structured enterprises.
The programme combined personal development, entrepreneurship training, practical business development, mentorship and preparation for a final Pitch Day.
identity, purpose and entrepreneurial mindset;
business models and value propositions;
branding and market positioning;
business compliance;
pricing and sales;
marketing and customer development;
pitching and business communication; and
practical business implementation.
Verified participation and outcomes:
50 women participated;
35 businesses were launched; and
8 jobs were created.
Delivery relationship: Her Voice Foundation led the programme. ATA Training Academy provided specialist training and enterprise-development support.
The Her Voice Female Graduates Empowerment Hub is designed as a community-based pathway for unemployed female graduates who require structured support to move towards employment, enterprise and meaningful economic participation.
The programme brings together:
personal and leadership development;
employability and workplace readiness;
entrepreneurship and economic activation;
mentorship;
guided digital learning;
participant support;
community and employer engagement; and
individual pathways towards employment, enterprise or further development.
Delivery relationship: Her Voice Foundation is the programme lead and nonprofit applicant. ATA Training Academy would provide specialist employability, learning and enterprise-development components.
For Mothers Who Have Lost a ChildGrieving With HopeYou do not have to rush grief to begin finding hope.
Grieving With Hope is a formation experience for mothers living with the death of a child.
It creates compassionate space to acknowledge the depth of the loss, honour the child who is no longer physically present and begin discovering how grief and hope can exist together.
There is no timetable for grief and no expectation that a mom should simply “move on.” Grieving With Hope recognises that rebuilding a life after the death of a child does not mean forgetting the child or diminishing their place within the family.
Continue the Journey
The recorded webinar is the beginning of the Grieving With Hope journey.
Live webinars provide an opportunity to encounter the work in real time, engage with the formation themes and connect with a wider community of moms who understand the particular grief of losing a child.
Join the waiting list to be notified when the next Grieving With Hope webinar opens.
The Formation Journey
Grieving With Hope helps moms begin engaging four important movements:
01 — Acknowledging the Loss: Making room for the reality and weight of grief without pressure to minimise, explain or rush it.
02 — Remembering with Dignity: Honouring the child’s life, place and continuing significance within the mom’s and family’s story.
03 — Rebuilding Without Forgetting: Beginning to participate in life again without interpreting healing, joy or progress as betrayal.
04 — Making Room for Hope: Recognising that grief and hope can coexist, and that hope does not require the absence of sorrow.
Why This Work Exists
Grieving With Hope was shaped by the lived experience of Her Voice founder Adv. Miliswa Mokoteli following the death of her daughter on 2 January 2017 and her son, Mpho Yarona, who was born on 30 October 2020 and died a few days later.
It grew from an understanding that the death of a child changes a parent’s life permanently—and that bereaved moms need spaces where their grief is acknowledged, their children are remembered and hope is approached with honesty and compassion.
Important Support Information
Grieving With Hope is a formation and support experience. It does not provide psychological diagnosis, psychotherapy, medical treatment, crisis intervention or emergency services.
The programme is intended to complement—not replace—appropriate care from registered psychologists, counsellors, medical practitioners and other qualified professionals.
A person experiencing a mental-health emergency or immediate danger should contact an appropriate emergency or crisis-response service.
Partner With Grieving With Hope
Companies, foundations, healthcare professionals, bereavement practitioners and community organisations can partner with Her Voice Foundation to extend Grieving With Hope to more parents.
Partnership may include:
Sponsoring access to webinars and formation experiences
Providing professional expertise & referral support
Follow Grieving With Hope for reflections, programme announcements, webinar dates and new resources for bereaved parents. Facebook · Instagram
A Her Voice Foundation ProgrammeMpho Yarona ProjectRestoring Dignity to Women and Families Experiencing Hidden Homelessness
Hidden homelessness does not always look like sleeping on the street.
A woman may be moving between relatives’ homes, staying temporarily with friends, paying for short periods in guest accommodation or storing her belongings in different places while trying to keep her family together.
She may still be working, studying, parenting or searching for employment. From the outside, her homelessness may be almost invisible. The absence of a secure home nevertheless affects every part of her life.
The Mpho Yarona Project responds to this missing middle of homelessness: women and families whose housing instability is real but whose circumstances may not fit the conventional picture of homelessness or the criteria of a public shelter.
Our Purpose
The Mpho Yarona Project provides discreet, dignity-centred and individually structured support to selected women and the families for whom they are responsible.
The purpose is not simply to address an immediate need. It is to work alongside each woman as she moves towards secure housing, financial stability and greater self-sufficiency.
Support as Partnership
The project does not approach women as passive recipients of charity.
Each participating woman is treated as a partner in rebuilding her stability. She participates in identifying her most urgent needs, defining her goals & developing a realistic pathway forward.
Support is tailored because the causes & consequences of hidden homelessness are different for every family.
Our Services
Depending on the woman’s assessed circumstances, the agreed support plan and the resources available, assistance may include:
01 — Temporary Housing Assistance: Short-term accommodation support or assistance with another immediate housing need while a longer-term solution is developed.
02 — Dignity-Based Financial Assistance: Carefully assessed assistance through cash grants, gift cards, stipends or other flexible support that allows the woman to address essential needs with dignity and appropriate personal choice.
03 — Essential and Practical Support: Dignity products, food assistance, transport, connectivity, technology or other resources needed to help the family function during a period of transition.
04 — Employment and Income Support: Assistance with employment searches, income opportunities, enterprise pathways or connections to suitable work-readiness and skills-development opportunities.
05 — Financial Literacy and Recovery Planning: Practical support to help the woman understand her financial position, prioritise immediate obligations, rebuild financial control and develop a sustainable recovery plan. Where funding and programme conditions allow, assistance may include a small no-interest recovery loan.
06 — Educational Opportunities: Connection to appropriate education, training or development opportunities that can strengthen the woman’s pathway towards longer-term stability.
07 — Mentorship and Advocacy: A participating family may be paired with a suitable mentor or advocate who provides guidance, encouragement and connection to additional resources. The mentor’s role is to listen, support problem-solving, recognise progress and help the woman remain connected to her agreed pathway.
08 — Private Support Circles: Where appropriate, the Foundation may facilitate confidential, stigma-free conversations or workshops for women and families facing similar challenges. These spaces focus on shared experience, resilience, practical learning and rebuilding rather than public disclosure of hardship.
09 — Personalised Stability and Exit Plan: Each supported woman works towards an individual plan covering relevant areas such as housing, employment or income, financial independence, education or skills development, family stability, personal development and transition from project assistance. The plan is broken into achievable milestones and reviewed as circumstances change.
How We Engage
Trusted Community Partners: The Foundation works with schools, community organisations, social workers, local leaders, professional practitioners and other trusted partners who can identify and refer families sensitively.
Discreet Access: Women should be able to request assistance without publicly identifying themselves as homeless. The project uses private enquiries, trusted intermediaries and non-stigmatising language to protect dignity.
Confidential Conversations: Initial engagement takes place privately through an appropriate meeting, telephone conversation or secure online process. Women are given time to explain their circumstances without public exposure or unnecessary interrogation.
Individual Assessment: The Foundation considers the family’s present accommodation, dependants, income position, available support, immediate risks and potential pathway towards stability.
Co-Created Support Plan: Where the project can assist, the Foundation and the woman agree on the type of support, its purpose, the responsibilities of each party and the intended transition pathway.
Respectful Monitoring: Progress is monitored through agreed, non-intrusive check-ins. The support plan may be adjusted when circumstances change or new opportunities become available.
Consent-Led Storytelling: No family’s name, photograph, personal information or story will be published without informed written consent. Where a woman agrees to share her experience, she will retain control over how much is disclosed and how her story is presented.
Who May Be Considered
The project is designed for women and their dependent families who:
do not currently have secure and stable accommodation;
are staying temporarily with relatives, friends or in other short-term arrangements;
have experienced displacement following circumstances such as job loss, illness, eviction or family breakdown;
require structured, time-bound assistance to regain stability; and
are willing to participate in an agreed support and transition process.
Support is subject to assessment, available resources, partner capacity and alignment with the project’s mandate.
Important Information
The Mpho Yarona Project is not a public shelter, permanent accommodation provider or emergency-response service.
Submitting an enquiry does not guarantee acceptance, accommodation, a cash grant, a loan or any other form of assistance.
Support depends on individual assessment, available funding, suitable partnerships and the Foundation’s capacity at the time.
Anyone requiring immediate emergency accommodation, medical assistance, protection or crisis intervention should contact the appropriate emergency or professional service.
Why Mpho Yarona?
The project is named after Adv. Miliswa Mokoteli’s son, Mpho Yarona, who was born on 30 October 2020 and died a few days later.
His name means “our gift.”
The project is also informed by Adv. Miliswa’s family experience of hidden homelessness after relocating from Bloemfontein to Johannesburg in 2015. For approximately two months, they lived without a settled home of their own while continuing to work and rebuild their life.
These experiences shaped a project that sees the person before the circumstance and understands that timely, respectful support can prevent temporary housing instability from becoming prolonged displacement.
How the Project Is Funded
The Mpho Yarona Project is funded through Her Voice Foundation partnerships, contributions and its dedicated social-enterprise funding vehicle, Empathy Donuts™.
Partner With Us
Companies, foundations, property partners, professional practitioners, public institutions and community organisations may contribute through:
Funding
Temporary accommodation
Products and dignity items
Gift cards or family support stipends
Transport and connectivity
Technology
Employment and income opportunities
Educational opportunities
Professional services
Mentorship and advocacy
Referral partnerships
Monitoring and evaluation support
Requesting or Referring Support
A woman may submit a confidential enquiry for herself. An individual, school, community organisation, social worker, professional practitioner or other trusted person may also submit a referral with the woman’s knowledge and consent.
Please do not provide identity documents, bank statements, medical records or extensive financial information with your initial enquiry. Supporting documentation may be requested securely if the enquiry proceeds to formal assessment.
Empathy Donuts: Supporting the Mpho Yarona Project
Watch the Empathy Donuts video to learn more about the initiative supporting the project. Open the video below, or scan the QR code with another device.
Follow the Mpho Yarona Project for information about hidden homelessness, programme developments, partnership opportunities and verified impact updates.
A Her Voice Foundation Social EnterpriseEmpathy Donuts™Every bite restores.
Empathy Donuts turns an everyday treat into practical support for women and families experiencing hidden homelessness.
Every donut costs R25, and 50% of every purchase goes directly to the Mpho Yarona Project. The Mpho Yarona Project provides dignity-centred, case-based assistance to selected women and families living without secure and stable accommodation.
What Is Empathy Donuts?
Empathy Donuts is the dedicated social-enterprise funding vehicle of the Mpho Yarona Project.
It offers people, companies, campuses & communities a simple way to participate in restoration through something familiar, accessible and shareable.
The model brings together:
This is not charity as spectacle. It is empathy in action.
A quality product
A partner bakery
Purpose-driven purchasing
Community sales opportunities
Enterprise and employment participation
Sustainable funding for the Mpho Yarona Project
The Product
Empathy Donuts are produced in partnership with an independent baker and sold in limited batches to protect freshness, quality and responsible fulfilment.
Current product: Classic glazed Empathy Donut
Price: R25 per donut
Available order options: Single donut; Box of three; Box of six; Bulk and institutional orders.
Ordering is not open yet. Available batches and collection arrangements will be confirmed before an order is accepted.
Where Your Purchase Goes
50% of every Empathy Donut purchase contributes directly to the Mpho Yarona Project. Through your purchase, you help the project:
Support women and families in temporary accommodation
Provide practical and dignity-based assistance
Support women during periods of housing transition
Connect families to stability pathways
Address hidden homelessness before it becomes prolonged or publicly visible
Small acts. Real impact.
Every purchase contributes to a larger restoration pathway.
How to Order
01 — Select Your Order: Choose the number of individual donuts or boxes required.
02 — Complete the Order Form: Provide your contact information, order quantity and the relevant collection selection.
03 — Receive Confirmation: Empathy Donuts will confirm product availability and send payment information.
04 — Secure Your Order: Your order is secured once availability has been confirmed and payment has been received.
05 — Collect Your Order: The confirmed collection date, time and location will be communicated directly to you.
Bulk and Institutional Orders
Turn a shared treat into shared impact.
Companies, universities, churches, public institutions, community organisations and event hosts can place collective Empathy Donuts orders.
Bulk orders can be used for:
Staff appreciation
Meetings and conferences
Campus activations
Community events
Organisational celebrations
Awareness campaigns
Her Voice events
Purpose-led workplace initiatives
The bulk-order model is based on: One collective order; One order coordinator; One payment process; One agreed collection point; One shared impact.
Bulk orders remain subject to production capacity and advance confirmation.
Host an Empathy Donuts Day
An Empathy Donuts Day allows an organisation, workplace, campus or community to mobilise a collective order around one shared sales and collection date.
Empathy Donuts can provide:
Approved campaign information
Digital promotional material
The Empathy Donuts impact story
A central order link
Order coordination guidance
Confirmed collection arrangements
A verified impact update following the campaign
Donut Champions
Sell with purpose. Earn with dignity.
The Empathy Donuts growth model creates opportunities for university students and young women to participate as Donut Champions.
Donut Champions may support:
Campus and community sales
Order coordination
Stock management
Customer engagement
Impact storytelling
Campaign activations
Collection-point coordination
Approved Donut Champions may earn commission based on the applicable sales model. The model is intended to create a practical income opportunity while expanding the reach and social impact of Empathy Donuts.
Partner With Empathy Donuts
Empathy Donuts can work with:
Bakeries and food-production partners
Universities and colleges
Corporate workplaces
Cafés and retail environments
Churches
Foundations
Public institutions
Community organisations
Event organisers
Logistics and collection partners
Partnership opportunities may include: Producing Empathy Donuts; Hosting a sales or collection point; Stocking Empathy Donuts; Sponsoring a production batch; Placing recurring staff or customer orders; Hosting an Empathy Donuts Day; Supporting Donut Champions; Providing packaging or logistics; Expanding Empathy Donuts into a new community.
Direct Support
Don’t want a donut but still want to help?
Individuals and organisations may contribute directly to the Mpho Yarona Project through Her Voice Foundation without placing a product order.
