It starts with a group of little girls who were five years old a year ago. Yolanda, the Mommy of the one little girl works for my family. I got to know
that her daughter, Mpho, played “school school” with her friends, with not much more than their wonderful imaginations.

I decided to help Mpho with her teaching and during the first year of Covid Lockdown, would take them all kinds of art material, along with ideas, to
keep them stimulated, happy and busy.One day was sewing cushion covers for my Mom, using a soft, creamy, fleecy fabric. Yolanda saw a long piece left over and asked if I would make

her a belt for her dressing gown. made it long so it would loop as a gown belt should.

The next time I saw Yolanda I asked how the belt fitted. She laughed and said her daughter had taken it. knew that Mpho was a small child, (now
six), and said the belt must be very big for her. She laughed again and said Mpho used it to tie her baby to her back. I liked the idea of role playing
this common practice in our country, and said how great it was to carry her doll on her back. Again Yolanda laughed and said Mpho did not have a
doll, but used a book or large pot lid, which she pretended was her baby.

am among the first to marvel at the wonderful imaginations of children, and whilst this was creative, it also sadden me that some children did not
have dolls. For play to be just that… carrying your baby on your back… that would be satisfactory.. But then the play needed to be extended to hold
ing, loving and dressing your baby, which just would not work with a book or a lid.

I decided to do something for the group of six girls. This took me back to a doll I made more than 30 years ago, Lucy.
Lucy and the group of six, became the inspiration for Cuddably.

Within a week I made the dolls together with their bedding.

We did some recycling of used store boxes by covering them with fabric, and added a mattress, pillow and blanket.

This was a very rushed job and far from professional… But that did not matter in the end… The best was the absolute joy of the children. It was dur
ing the first week of September, which for us is our Spring celebration. We sent along treats for the group to enjoy along with their dolls,
There was also a lot of unhappiness for neighbouring children who saw the dolls and could not have one. Yolanda had her hands full trying to spread
the treats to try make up for the disappointment of no doll to the many children who came to join the party.

Apart from producing and selling our Cuddably, we will strive to find some way of giving those less fortunate their very own baby.

Time will tell as to how we manage this dream.