"So Sorry to Hear This": San Salvador Home Pleads for Help After Losing Hyde Park Residence
- San Salvador Home, a Johannesburg care facility housing 58 women with intellectual disabilities, announced it is being forced to vacate its Hyde Park property after nearly 90 years
- The property, owned by the Dominican Sisters, is being sold for commercial development, leaving the non-profit with an estimated R250,000 moving cost and R6 million in renovation costs for a new site
- The home launched a BackaBuddy campaign asking the public to donate or share their story so the women can be moved safely and with dignity
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Source: UGC
San Salvador Home, a Johannesburg care facility that has housed women with intellectual disabilities for nearly 90 years, is facing one of its most difficult chapters. The Hyde Park home announced on 11 August 2026 that it is being forced to vacate its premises after the property, owned by the Dominican Sisters, was sold for commercial development.
The home currently cares for 58 women, many of whom come from disadvantaged backgrounds and have no family or outside support system. For several of them, San Salvador is the only home they have ever known. The longest-standing resident has lived there for over 30 years.
According to reports, General Manager Ronelle Sartor described the news as heartbreaking. “In my many years here, I have watched these women build a life within these walls. Friendships, routines, and a genuine sense of belonging and community cannot simply be packed into a box and moved,” she said.
A move that could cost everything
The organisation, which operates as a non-profit with limited resources, has identified a potential new property. However, renovations to bring it up to the required standard are estimated at R6 million. Moving costs alone are quoted at R250,000, and a BackaBuddy crowdfunding campaign has been launched to raise that amount from the public.
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Not all 58 residents will be able to make the move together. Those who cannot transition to the new facility will be placed in alternative care, though the home says their absence will be deeply felt.
San Salvador Home is appealing for donations, furniture, building supplies, solar power assistance, and any offers of suitable property. Section 18A tax certificates will be issued to qualifying donors, and naming rights to buildings will be offered to major sponsors.
Anyone wanting to help can visit www.sansalvadorhome.org or contact Ronelle Sartor at ronelle@sansalvadorhome.org or on 010 449 6459.
Watch the home’s appeal that moved thousands online:
Mzansi reacts to San Salvador Home’s plea
South Africans were deeply affected by the story and responded with frustration, sadness, and calls to action:
@lesego.boya said:
“Things the government should be spending money on instead of misusing funds all the time. 😴"
@kroessista wrote:
“Why must everything be commercialised? 🤯 I am so sorry to hear this.”
@estelle.frankel asked:
“Where are all the corporates that make so much money in our area? Reach out. This is such an incredible place.”
@jenna_catherine01 said:
“Oh no. I’m so sad that you can’t stay where you are. I adored working there as a student, and it was so lovely to see home-familiar resident faces in your video. ❤️”
@bellemahogany asked:
“Who decided to sell it?”
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Source: Briefly News
