Strand Rotary Club and Gordon’s Bay Yacht Club (GBYC) pooled its resources to support two local organisations, Patch Helderberg centre for sexually abused children and ACVV Strand, to spread the love and joy over the festive season.
Through the joint initiative, recipients were handed gift bags, individual items, food packs and even cash donations.
A key driver of the project was GBYC committee member, Carol Ferguson, who celebrates her birthday on Christmas Day and is therefore affectionately also known as “Christmas Carol”. She was ecstatic with the response and the generosity of yacht club members. “It was so inspiring to see how many people took part and how much trouble they went to to create the gift packs.”
Ferguson also mentioned that some members took it a few steps further by “Spring cleaning” to provide more goods to the two local charities.
“I’d really like to thank the members and sailors of Gordon’s Bay Yacht Club for the tremendous support,” she said.
Patch Helderberg
The organisation provides holistic services to the survivors of child sexual abuse, including assessments, therapeutic interventions, court preparation and a 24-hour crisis line – all provided by a skilled team of registered social workers and social auxiliary workers.
Patch’s wish list included items such as face cloths, white bath soap, toothbrushes and toothpaste, body lotion and towels.
Packs are required mostly for girls aged four to 15 years, and a teddy bear or soft toy adds comfort for the youths, especially for younger victims.
Donors were given the option to provide individual items, and have Rotary make up gift bags or they could make up their own bags.
ACVV Somerset West
This organisation is one of only a few designated child protection organisations (DCPO) in South Africa. In terms of the Children’s Act, this means that the ACVV may render the full scope of child protection services – from prevention programmes to statutory intervention.
The organisation is always in need of non-perishable food stuff for families who offer a place of safety for children who have yet to receive their Sassa grant, and children (usually resident at children’s homes) spending school holidays with their parents.
The ACVV delivered food packs to the children throughout the holiday season to ensure their balanced diet was sustained and, at the same time, oversee the children’s safety and care. Cash donations were also made by GBYC member, which was used to buy fresh vegetables to deliver to the families.
A statement from Strand Rotary Club said the GBYC has been its members’ meeting place since 2019 and they have always enjoyed tremendous support for their efforts from the yacht club’s members, from the Rotary Adopt-a-Nurse Covid initiative to fundraising quiz nights and more. “It’s a great partnership and we look forward to doing a lot more good together in the community.”
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If you are interested in joining Strand Rotary Club, consider attending the weekly meeting on Thursdays at 18:30. For the weekly dinner choices, send a WhatsApp message to 063 067 2709 or an email to Elenore@4ward.co.za.
