We had an overwhelming response to this year’s Mandela Day Fundraiser to sponsor 100 kids and their families from James House Child & Youth Care Centre with a Madiba/Covid Family-Pack. Despite the Covid-19 pandemic being a difficult time for everyone, so many were willing to help another family and generously donated towards the initiative. The R45 000 target was exceeded which meant we were able to include even more items in each Family-Pack!

Each Madiba/Covid Family-Pack included a combination of groceries, winter warmers, hygiene items and educational material:

• 1 x Groceries Combo and 1 x Fruit & Veg Combo from YeboFresh who pick, pack and deliver groceries to township areas.
• 2 x hot water bottles, a blanket, beanie, scarf.
• 1 x 750ml sanitizer, 2 x adult masks, 2 x kiddies masks.
•  1 x reading book. We worked with Biblionef who individually selected a book for each child according to their age and mother tongue language. A large percentage of children in SA are not able to read for meaning. With schools being closed, our hope was that a book in their own language will help foster a love for reading, open their imaginations and improve literacy levels while reading for enjoyment.

Due to Covid-19, this was the first time we were not able to organise a Mandela Day event with activities for the kids or personally hand out their gifts. Instead, a personalized Mandela Day card was added to each Family-Pack with the child’s name along with a Madiba quote: A winner is a dreamer who never gives up:) On Mandela Day, the James House team handed these out to the families in the Imizamo Yethu and Hangberg community. James House has expressed their heartfelt thanks to all involved and reported that the Family-Packs were well-received!

100 Family-Packs were only possible because of each person’s contribution…proof that through a collective effort, we can make an impact on the lives of those less fortunate!