Excitement was evident to the faces of a group of men in Nyanga when they received pairs of sneakers donated by members of Nyanga Men Empowerment (NME) organisation from that area on Friday 18 July.
The event which was held at Nyanga Arts Development Centre in that area was part of celebrating the 67 minutes of Nelson Mandela Day.
NME is a non-profit organisation that works with young boys and men to become responsible men. At least 50 unemployed men benefited during the event.
One of the beneficiaries, Shakes Tatsi, said the present means a lot to him.
The 46-year-old man said he has been struggling to buy the sneakers because he is unemployed.
“What the NME did was out of this world. I was wearing the flip flop even during the rain. At least now I have a sneaker. My life won’t be the same. It means a lot to me because I couldn’t afford it. Even if it was sold for R20 I couldn’t afford it because I don’t have money,” said Tatsi.
He said he survives by selling scrap. NME chair, Xolani Feni said he saw a need to donate the sneakers to the needy people in his area. He said most of the beneficiaries are people who used to attend his sessions.
“My organisation is working mostly with men. So, I often see them when they are coming to our gatherings. Some of them don’t even come to our meetings because they have nothing to wear on their feet. Then I decided to collect the sneakers just to donate to them,” said Feni.
He stated that it pains him to see men suffering. He said the aim is to change and bring back their dignity. He highlighted that some of them are coming from jail, others have no families to stay with etc. Feni emphasised that it is not the first time his organisation is doing such kind initiatives.
