Week 44 - My Sunday Photo. Volunteering in South Africa

This should've been a photo of the team, in the school hall with 7000 christmas gifts neatly packed into the cartons and captioned 'Job done'

Sadly this is what we will be doing all day. We have to finish checking approx 400 boxes then we can start wrapping up and the computer system will tell us what boxes are needed for which carton.

We were a couple hundred pledges short so team have been making up these boxes over the weekend from physical donations from the public and cooperates. Around 500 boxes that have been pledged just haven't been delivered, either people forgot, many just can't be arsed to get up and bring the boxes in or they've simply changed their mind.

What this means is that 500 children will go without a gift, but those 500 children are spread over 89 facilities, 30 kids here, 10 kids there, maybe just one child.

We cannot and will not go to a facility for celebration day, knowing that some of the children there will not receive a gift, so today is being spent, making boxes, we've run out of boxes, we're running low on things to put in our none existent box.

2011 we were learning
2012 we were short of boxes
2013 we hit target and were making boxes for the Joburg team to help them out
2014 we were over target
2015 we are under target, making a plan and making boxes

Over the next week we need the following donations to help us reach our target, and require the following:

toothbrush/paste/soap/face cloth
sweets
toys
clothing
shoeboxes

If you would like to support the work I'm doing in South Africa you can make a donation here, if you're in Pretoria and can get to the Chinese School today with any donations or just your time to help us with the packing we'd love to see you, especially if you could bring us a decorated shoebox and maybe a cafe latte.

I need your help please

I volunteer with #santashoebox in Pretoria.

We are short of pledges for Christmas shoe boxes this year, around 3000 more pledges are needed by drop off days the 3rd week in October. Where we check the boxes, pack and store till mid November before distributing to disadvantaged children in the surrounding area.

This is a country wide initiative. We still have facility names to release and 2 of my facilities are on that list.

I'd hate for any child to miss out, I'd hate to have to go to the facilities and tell them that we didn't reach our target.

I can't name the facilities but I can tell you a little bit about them.

The first facility needs 12 shoe boxes. This is a home for girls no longer able to live with their families. The second facility is a care home for children with mental health issues, they need 10 boxes.

If the pledges don't come in I will be donating boxes to these 2 facilities myself. I haven't made an individual pledge this year or last year as I donate fillers and my time to raising awareness, promoting and sitting on the committee both locally and regionally.

This year I'm making up stationery packs. So far 150 for ages 2-18. It is amazing how many people forget to put one of the required items in the boxes.

Each box requires:
Stationery
Toothbrush & paste
Sweets
Clothing
Toy

It doesn't have to cost the earth. Around R100 for a basic box and some people, judging by the contents, spend R500+ per box.

It doesn't matter if one child gets a bumper box and another gets a basic box. These children have nothing and anything and everything is cherished and a much wanted gift.

So if you feel like taking on a facility or you can donate X amount of boxes. Please contact me. You don't have to be living in Pretoria to pledge a box.