Your feet our mission, say Angels
A NON-PROFIT organisation founded by a Khayelitsha resident brought joy to primary school pupils in the Mandalay area as it donated 40 pairs of shoes yesterday.
Kasi Angels Foundation aims to donate 9 000 shoes to pupils around the country.
Currently, the initiative has collected over 600 shoes and aims to reach a 2 000 target by the end of the month.
Gerald Nomlala, organiser of the initiative, said last year they collected more than 800 pairs of school shoes that were donated to fire victims in Knysna and other townships.
“Funding for these shoes came from a few friends and from printing Kasi Angels T-shirts and pins which we sold to the public,” he said.
“Out of four T-shirts and four pins we sold, we managed to purchase one pair of shoes. Our aim is to continue with this trend and not to depend only on donors. But the lack of funding is threatening our campaigns.”
Nomlala said last year that they were approached by several agencies to assist in corporate social responsibility initiatives within local communities as part of the June 16 campaign.
He said their target was #9000Shoes, with 1 000 shoes to be donated in each of the nine provinces.
“By the time we start distributing these school shoes and senator pads at the end of the first quarter in 2018, cold winter will be at the doorstep for the poor South African child.
“To some kids, school will be a no-go area because they can’t afford a pair of shoes or sanitary pads. School shoes and pads don’t play a luxury role to a child, but are necessities that provide protection and comfort. They also build self-confidence and dignity, which encourages children to attend school,” he said.
Nomlala said this was to send a message to the government that schoolchildren should get a free pair of shoes every year. He said they would also target pensioners who have grandchildren that need school shoes.