Do it for Mandela
Durban — Every year, on the anniversary of Madiba’s birthday – July 18, 1918 – the global community commemorates and honours his legacy by doing work to better our communities and neighbourhoods.
This year, the theme for Mandela Day is: It is still in your hands to combat poverty and inequity.
The Nelson Mandela Foundation will hold the Nelson Mandela Day Walk and Run on Saturday, July 20, a hybrid event that allows people wherever they are to participate. The goal is to have 10000 people walk or run 5km, 10km or 21km in commemoration of the legacy of the former statesman.
Gushwell Brooks, head of Mandela Day at the Nelson Mandela Foundation, said: “Your presence and participation will go a long way towards commemorating the legacy of Madiba during the month of his birth and will support the Nelson Mandela Foundation in its mission to mobilise Nelson Mandela’s legacy towards dismantling poverty and inequity. Join us by making a donation of your choice via https://www.fundnation.org/nelsonmandela”
Virtual participants will receive their special race number and are encouraged to take photos and post on social media with the hashtags #MandelaDay2024 and #ItIsInYourHands
Instagram: @nelsonmandelafoundationsa; LinkedIn: Nelson Mandela Foundation; Facebook: Nelson Mandela; TikTok: @nelsonmandelafoundation1; X: @ NelsonMandela; Our journey – https:// youtu.be/iFrgVv9SP-E
Save a life with R50 this Mandela Day. DKMS, an international NPO dedicated to the fight against blood cancer, points out that across the world inequity continues to grow.
Many countries and regions are still reckoning with the destructive impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, war, populism and economic despair.
Swab kits are used to collect DNA samples after someone registers as a stem cell donor. These are then sent to a lab where experts analyse their HLA characteristics to identify potential matches for patients in need of a stem cell transplant. Once the swab kit is typed, a potential donor is added to the registry where they become a life saver in waiting for patients searching for a stem cell donor.
“Your R50 helps cover the costs of this journey. In doing so, you ensure that more swabs are tested so that more people can potentially become stem cell donors and save more lives,” said Palesa Mokomele, head of community engagement and communications.
She said: “Mandela Day reminds us of Tata Madiba’s legacy and how, when we come together, we can really make a change. This legacy is one we believe can make a difference in our society and, furthermore, in the lives of the patients with whom we work.”
Play your part this Mandela Day by making a donation at www.dkms-africa. org/get-involved/donate-money or register as a stem cell donor at https://www. dkms-africa.org/register-now
The Santa Shoebox Project will be hosting its online initiative by pledging personalised Virtual Santa Shoeboxes. “These specially curated boxes bring joy to underprivileged children in remote areas of South Africa, where a lack of donors might otherwise leave them without an end-of-year gift,” said Deb Zelezniak, the NPO’s CEO.
Each shoebox is filled with eight essentials: a toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, facecloth, school supplies, a toy, sweets, and a voucher for clothing.
South Africans will have the chance to purchase a Virtual Santa Shoebox from the Santa Shoebox Project website as well as from OneDayOnly.co.za.
This will ensure that all eight required items are packed into a cheerfully printed shoebox along with extra items like a lunchbox, school socks and books. For those who cannot afford this, an option to donate any amount of money will also be available. In addition, OneDayOnly.co.za will be matching the total number of Virtual Santa Shoeboxes bought on their site.
“Surplus funds generated from these pledges are allocated to the SSP Leacy initiatives, used to bring permanent change to the lives of Santa Shoebox beneficiary children and the impoverished communities in which they live,” said Zelezniak.
To pledge, go to https:// santashoebox.org.za or https://www. onedayonly.co.za
Link Hills Pharmacy at Watercrest Mall in Waterfall, will be hosting a Beanie, Blankets and A Jar of Hope Day as their initiative.
These items are collected in the form of donations and are given to the underprivileged members of the community.
Irene Johnson, who runs the promotions at the shop, said they were already in the process of collecting the items, and the ingredients to fill 67 jars with ingredients for soup – each being sufficient to feed four people.
“We try and look for older women as well who are supporting large families because it is very hard living on a government grant, especially in winter,” Johnson said.
SA Harvest and The Pavilion will be holding the first #BucketsofNutrition campaign taking place on Thursday from 11am to 3pm at the shopping mall. The emphasis of the campaign is on delivering a bundle of nutritious non-perishable ingredients to families in need.
SA Harvest is a food rescue and hunger relief NPO and has invited the public to either bring pre-filled buckets with essential non-perishable food items and drop them off at the info desk or lend a hand to pack them on site. The items will support families in need in Durban, Johannesburg and Cape Town.
At the Denis Hurley Centre in Durban, the vision of Mandela Day is being spread across a whole month of July with a call-out to collect 10052 quality second-hand books for their Street Lit booksellers, one for every day Madiba spent in prison.
The Durban- based entrepreneurship programme enables a team of homeless and formerly homeless men and women to earn a modest living, have a renewed life-purpose, and encourage and enable people to read more books.
Project facilitator Illa Thompson said: “With so many vendors selling books, and with new apprentice vendors joining the team, we need to keep them constantly supplied in quality books. So, we are launching a Durban-wide book drive for July: Mandela Month. The challenge is to collect 10 052 books – one for every day he spent in prison. After all, books must have been one of the things that kept Madiba sane for 27 long years.
“A number of churches across the city have agreed to be drop-off points to make it easier for people to donate. The list is on our Facebook page and website and will be updated regularly. So, now is the time to pass on those quality books that you really loved so someone else can enjoy them too.”
For additional information, contact Illa on books@denishurleycentre.org
Sunday Tribune