Passion for disabled rewarded with gift of fresh water tanks
DAILY Dispatch and Johnson & Johnson Local Heroes finalist, Sithembile Dlutu received any early Christmas gift yesterday afternoon when Eco Tanks presented him with water tanks for his community garden project.
Eco Tanks, who is one of the Daily Dispatch’s sponsors for this year’s top 12, will install the tanks in Dlutu’s community garden in Belgravia.
In 2010, Dlutu transformed a neglected piece of land behind his home into a lush organic vegetable garden, and he said the new tanks would bring a significant turnaround to the garden’s irrigation.
“We don’t have running water yet, and rely on a nearby stream to feed water into the garden. Thanks to these tanks, we will finally have an irrigation system. It is a very good thing for us. We appreciate it as a project.”
His urban garden project, Siphokuhle Community Development for Intellectually Impaired Disabled People, produces a wide variety of vegetables.
It supplies vegetables to eateries around East London and benefits several soup kitchens and daycare centres.
Dlutu, a teacher at Khayalethu Special Needs School, works with physically and mentally challenged young adults who have completed their matrics and are at home.
He said working with special needs pupils he realized that there was no exit-strategy in place for them once they left school.
“Because I have a deep understanding of how they are, I saw it best to bring them on board to tend to the garden themselves. Now, they have jobs, and are able to provide for themselves too.”
Darren Hanner, one of the partners of Eco Tanks, said: “Eco Tanks is privileged to be able to give back to the community via the worthy cause of the Siphokuhle Community Development Centre.
“It is heartwarming to see people like Sithembele Dlutu doing what they do for others who are in much need of assistance.
“Sithembele alerted us about a need for some water storage at the fresh produce farm in Belgravia, and we are in the process of supplying a solution to his water storage needs.”
PnA stationers will be donating R5 000 vouchers to two finalists.
Also, all cash proceeds that were raised at the Vincent Park Superhero fun-run will be going towards the prize money for this year’s finalists.
Buy the Daily Dispatch tomorrow to find out who the remaining finalists are, as well as the prizes they will receive to help them to transform the world, one community at a time. —