OUR FOUNDERS
The story of Little Eden begins with a remarkable love story shaped by war. During World War II, South African soldier Danny Hyams escaped captivity and found shelter with the Rota family in the small Italian village of Albenza. It was there that he met young Domitilla Rota, whose family faced their own hardships during those years.
After the war, Danny returned to Johannesburg, determined to build a future. In 1947 he returned to Italy to marry Domitilla, bringing her home as his bride. Together they raised six children, most of whom would go on to play a role in the society their parents founded.
Two decades later, in 1967, everything changed. With nothing but faith and a R10 donation from Danny, Domitilla began caring for three little girls with profound intellectual disability in a borrowed church hall. When she promised a dying mother that she would care for her child for life, the vision grew from day care to lifelong residential care.
Despite relocations, limited resources and uncertainty, Danny and Domitilla’s dream never faltered. In 1974 they built a permanent home in Edenglen and later expanded with Elvira Rota Village in Bapsfontein. Today, 300 residents call these homes their sanctuary.
Domitilla remained actively involved until her eighties, praying daily for her “special angels” right up to her passing in 2011. Danny, who had quietly supported every step – from giving that very first R10 donation to serving as Board Chairman – joined her in 2012.
Domitilla once said:
“I have often wondered why God chose me to start a place like this. There is one thing I know: that people with intellectual disability have great value and that God gave them to us to touch our hearts and make us better people.”
Their legacy is more than the buildings, the orchards or the therapies. It is a community shaped by love, faith and determination – ordinary people whose compassion created something extraordinary. Today, Danny and Domitilla are being considered for beatification by the South African Bishops’ Conference, recognised not just as founders of Little Eden, but as servants of God whose lives continue to inspire.