Press Release; Cape Town, South Africa; 21 April 2023: Pamela Tosh, founder of IndiPam Spiritual Legacy Foundation NPO, announced the organizations objectives to work with the Department of Social Development and collaborate with other NPO’s, to introduce holistic programmes and sustainable solutions for escalating drug and alcohol addictions amongst displaced individuals and unhoused communities in the Western Cape.
After three years working on the streets of Lansdowne, representing Lansdowne Homeless Community and Flamingo Heights, nothing has changed. This is a direct result of addictions to drugs and alcohol, the social complexities of living in such a toxic environment, and the lack of resources in these areas to help educate and rehabilitate addicts.
IndiPam’s programmes aim to develop and repurpose ones own experience living with addictions from a negative to a positive; to reconnect with ones true identity; to manage the physical and spiritual body as two independent parts of one self; to realize one’s full potential and participation in the healing of our society.
In March 2020 Pamela Tosh returned from India in her role as Karma Yogi. With what she calls ‘spiritual energy’ or ‘gifts of the Spirit’ she provided such a wide range of services and compassionate care to her community, that is usually overwhelming and unimaginable for one person. The outreach projects and initiatives began in June 2020 with the collection and refilling of empty water containers and appeals for food and essential items which included the collection, repacking and distribution of food parcels as well as a wide range of items from clothing and shoes to medicines and dog food.
A spiritual activist, Pamela’s integration of spirituality and corporate public relations resulted in an unintentional but intuitive process of assessing and reporting on various levels of welfare, and then teaching by example. Whilst Pamela managed to raise important concerns and have articles published in local and regional newspapers she continuously put her life at risk. During the times when sensitive issues were confronted with community leaders (those leaders who were directly involved in the selling of alcohol and drugs to their community), she often had to retreat for lengths of time whilst ‘the heat’ died down.
Public Relations, reporting and communications became one of her key roles in ensuring that the city took accountability for the resources, municipal or council services and health and safety to this area, including animal welfare and youth mentorship.
Regardless of the risks Pamela built lasting relationships with leaders and members of these communities by being involved in a wide range of activities like dog feeding and emergency rescues involving community representatives, children and young adults, and was the driving force behind the Edith Stevens Nature Reserve environmental programmes offered to a selection of children from Flamingo Heights who need critical intervention.
Many of the homeless people living on the streets of Cape Town have chosen to remove themselves from society because of addiction. Addictions vary from drugs and alcohol, to co-dependent behaviors and sex crimes. Each individual has a different story, whether it be childhood trauma, ancestral wounding, karmic cycles, habits and patterns, abuse, traits that have been passed down from parents to their children over generations.
- Addicts are in a constant state of flight and fight, a survival mode which leaves the body in a constant loop of deprivation and depression.
- Addicts are not able to connect with their feelings and emotions like a sober person.
- Displacement, mental health problems and physical neglect are all certain consequences of addiction.
- It is a constant battle for an addict to discern what is right from wrong, what is true or false.
It has been an extremely difficult process, a journey full of sacrifices and suffering, to get to this point where I can confidently contribute all my knowledge through my experiences in India and South Africa to offer healing solutions for individuals. If we do not accept our responsibility in the healing of our country, and act now, we are going to witness such astronomically cruel effects on our society.
We need to approach our homeless crisis in the Western Cape with a new perspective.
It is not an exaggeration in this day and age, and I have experienced such in India, to say that atrocious deformities and dead bodies on the streets will become our new reality.”
We need to divert our attention to the deep level of soul wounding and remember who we are, essentially a powerful soul connected to Spirit by our intuition, our faith comes from the silent witness. The voice that speaks to us in our quiet moments.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Pamela was working in her private capacity during the intensive months of lockdown with one main goal, to find a place to teach yoga to the disadvantaged community in her area. But her appeals fell flat and she was forced to remove herself from doing sacrificial charity, as it took a toll on her own finances, bringing her to the realization it was not sustainable to continue without collaboration from The City and other stakeholders.
Pamela had a career in corporate and hospitality public relations in the Western Cape for more than twenty years before she was forced to address her own mental and physical health. It was the 200hour yoga teacher training course at an ashram in India which became the first step to rehabilitation from the effects of western society, a spiritual journey towards an authentic version of self. Pamela began working on the streets of Rishikesh, India’s yoga capital, in June 2013 providing first aid and specialist footcare to the poor and homeless, elderly, babas (spiritual monks) and followed a calling to serve as a Karma Yogi. Karma Yoga is the ‘yoga of action’ and when yogic techniques are applied daily one can be assured of accelerated conscious ascension.
Pamela’s devotion and transformational experiences in India were fundamental to her community initiatives in Lansdowne when it came to working on various levels of welfare simultaneously and starting different projects to create more awareness. Pamela attests to the presence of a Divine Source which fuels energy and offers intuitive guidance and protection.
The need to formalize IndiPam’s offering as a non-profit organization to tackle these issues head on became Pamela’s priority as applications began August 2022. Finally in April 2023 just short of IndiPam’s 10 year anniversary as a yoga teacher, the Department of Social Development awarded NPO status to IndiPam Spiritual Legacy Foundation NPO. Reg. 290-602.
For more information please contact Pamela Tosh using email pamela@indipam.com or call 083 475 2281.
EDITORS NOTES:
The core members of IndiPam NPO include:
Fikiswa Maqhashu, a dedicated social worker who was previously employed by U-Turn Homeless Ministries as an Outreach Social Auxiliary Worker from August 2021 for one year. During this time she spent many days sitting by the Lansdowne Bridge visiting the street people and doing one-on-one ‘ground work’ with them. Her duties included:
- Assessment and baseline of clients
- Assessment of background history
- Facilitating awareness programmes for individual and groups
- Report writing to families for re-unification
- Referrals to shelters for accommodation or rehabilitation centres
Pamela observed her passionate dedication and relationships with the street people, and offered her a position as a member of IndiPam NPO in August 2022.
Amanda White, the author of Suicide Salad, is a woman with amazing strength and bravery, offering her testimony as a survivor.
Suicide Salad is a tossed salad of true stories and reflections from a brave woman who learned how to add enough salad dressing to enable her to digest the chunkier, least savory bits of life she kept finding in her bowl. Expect a few rough journeys as a testimony to how resilient one soul can be in the face of adversity.
As of June 2021, the WHO estimated an annual global suicide rate of over 700,000 (and many more unsuccessful attempts). It is crucial to dispel the stigmas attached to suicide as a starting point to heal various inter-generational traumas. With this book, the author aims to create greater social awareness of suicide, and other challenges, to ensure that these stigmas are diminished, sooner rather than later.
Amanda has spent most of her life in South Africa. In her lifetime, she experienced the loss of more than a few loved ones in various ways—and too many to suicide. As a young mother, it was her husband, and as a grandmother, she would lose her youngest daughter, with many others in between. On the other side of the masks she wore to get through the days that were meant to break her, she found her way through many of life’s challenges, including health issues, depression, divorce, abuse, addictions, and unimaginable grief.
Rachel-Anne Tosh is Pamela’s 24 year old daughter who is currently living in Pretoria, working as Administrative Coordinator for Intercare Group and completing her Master’s Degree in community psychology. Rachel’s education is of great significance and value to the organization as she will offer critical research and support for the NPO and its future programmes and campaigns.