KARIEGA – A KwaNobuhle informal trader chose to celebrate her birthday by giving back to her community, serving warm soup and bread to more than 300 residents in an act of kindness inspired by the growing need she sees around her.
Andiswa Bebula, better known as Connie Bee, who owns a local fast-food business, hosted the community soup kitchen as part of her birthday celebrations. Although she said she does not have much herself, she wanted to ensure that others had a warm meal to enjoy.
Speaking to UD Express, she said, “I’m a giver by nature, so it came to my mind that I should celebrate my birthday by calling kids in my area to come and have soup and bread. To my surprise, it was not only kids who came, but elderly people as well.”
Connie first hosted the initiative in 2025, when around 200 children attended. Encouraged by the response, she decided to make it an annual event.
This year, she prepared three large pots of soup and bought 50 loaves of bread, serving about 350 people. There was even enough bread left over to share with the women who helped prepare the vegetables.
She funded the initiative herself, while three women assisted with peeling vegetables and preparing the meal. “The community really enjoyed the soup. Even today I still get compliments from people. Some I don’t even know, but they know me and they really appreciate what I did for them,” she said.
Connie said seeing so many adults queueing for a simple meal reminded her of the hardship many families face. “I’ve seen the need. People are hungry out there, it’s not even funny seeing ladies and guys in their 30s and 40s standing in the queue waiting for soup and bread. It means they are hungry,” she said.
Although she runs a fast-food container business to earn a living, Connie hopes people will not confuse it with her dream of helping those in need.
She said her greatest wish is to host one day a soup kitchen every week, despite not yet having the financial means to do so. “I won’t rest until I make a plan for my dream to come true. I’d love to cook warm meals for people in my area.”
Born and raised in KwaNobuhle, Connie started her business by baking traditional umbhako bread in 2019 after struggling to find employment. Today she also provides school transport and sells various food products to support herself.
Explaining why she chose to give to others on her birthday despite her own limited resources, Connie said she lives by the words: “Be the change you want to see in the world.”
“That’s just me. I’m the type of person who will give my last for the next person to be OK. I was born like that,” she concluded.
ALSO READ: Growing demand drives expansion of soup kitchen in Jeffreys Bay
