Greenwood Park Community Policing Forum (CPF) interim Secretary (Sub Forum 2) and Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinator, Danusha Makan-Maharaj, has always been a self described “doer”, a woman of action.
Her journey of community outreach and safety began in 2014, after she tragically lost her precious nine-year old son, Yurav, to an inoperable brain tumour. “The loss and grief up-ended who I thought I was and everyday, I’m still becoming,” shared Makan-Maharaj.
She said that all she wanted to do after losing her son was to “let the world know that there was a little boy who was loved beyond measure and whose legacy will live on”.
Makan-Maharaj formed a foundation in his memory, The Lightworkers Foundation (LWF), a completely self funded vehicle to do all of her charity work in honour of Yurav.
“LWF adopted Cottonlands Primary in Verulam as the school to uplift. Many initiatives have since been carried out at the school with a learner count of just under 1200. Each project undertaken was in the region of R30 000 to R40 000 and it was soul rewarding. To see the smiles on each learner’s face was priceless. The other highlight was hosting a grand fundraiser with Madiba as the inspiration, feeding 6700 children.”
She also formed a small support group for bereaved moms of kids under 15 who banded together to raise just under R150 000 for CHOC. Makan-Maharaj’s role as a community activist only grew from there when she delved into the male dominated world of community safety.
“I was elected in April 2022 to be a part of the GWP CPF Sub-Forum 2. This area comprises Greenwood Park, Effingham, Avoca and Redhill (GEAR). I was then tasked with the Neighbourhood Watch (NHW) Portfolio, where I was asked to bring together all the different areas within our sub-forum to work as one cohesive united body in fighting crime and keeping our neighbourhood and community safe.
“It was not a deliberate decision. I attended the meeting to show support to the newly elected chairperson and vice-chairperson of our Sub-forum and was then asked to be part of the exco they were trying to create. It was new and uncharted territory for me, but I quickly found myself thoroughly enjoying forging relationships with key players and becoming pivotal in being part of the change I wanted to see happening.”
Makan-Maharaj said that CPF and NHW structures are still “sadly antiquated, stuck on the idea that women are only capable of taking minutes and organising food for functions”.
“However in addition to being good at all the above, we are even better at running our portfolios equally well if not better than many of our male counterparts.”
The mother-of-two and self made entrepreneur said delving into a male dominated aspect of community work was not easy at first. “When I flipped the script, I then only felt pity and was unaffected by the insults and dismissive attitudes. I chose to prove by action and slowly gained the respect of open minded, forward thinking men who see women as equals and not beneath them. And fortunately, I have had the pleasure of encountering just as many genuine respectable men and realised the others were a non entity.”
Makan-Maharaj encourages more women to join their CPF and NHW structures as these entities are always in need of leadership that a woman naturally brings to the forefront.
She said: “A woman has the ability to critically analyse a situation and still be empathetic, decent, kind and organised in the way she handles a situation. A woman will look at all scenarios and devise a plan that’s best for her family and by extension, her neighbours and community. We are natural born protectors, carers, and providers and it is that ability to fully adapt to protect and care for our family that can be harnessed to protect and care for the community.”
