The Just Children Foundation (JCF) is a charitable organisation founded and run by Zimbabweans that is trying to respond to the needs of these most vulnerable members of society. The JCF was founded in 1996 by Moosa Kasimonje who gave up a business career in order to dedicate his life to the increasing number of children he was seeing abandoned on the streets of Harare.

When Dean and Paula Finnie went out to Harare to work with the JCF in 2001 Dean, a life long supporter of Crystal Palace knew that for many children in developing countries football is the game of choice. It can be played anywhere with very little equipment and provides a huge amount of enjoyment. He didn't know whether the children he would be working with would know very much about English football teams but he figured if they didn't they might as well support Crystal Palace. So he wrote to the club and explained the work he would be doing as a trained social worker in Harare and asked if they would like to sponsor it in any way and received a full set of Crystal Palace football kit for the children to wear.

Dean and Paula have now moved on from JCF and are working in South Africa, but there is still a place in Zimbabwe that is forever Crystal Palace. At Just Children Foundation they wear their Crystal Palace kit with pride.

The original children who wore this kit have mostly been reunited with their families or placed in full time schooling. But each generation of kids who are rescued from the streets inherits the kit. These photographs were taken at the opening of a new centre just outside Harare where eventually up to 240 children will be able to find temporary shelter until permanent arrangements can be made.

JCF operates as a registered charity in Zimbabwe and trades as a Private Voluntary Organisation (PVO).

For more information or to donate money then please contact Chris Dobson: cdobson@onetel.net