Joza Police and Round Table make a difference

The Joza Police and Round Table 11 teamed up and donated clothes and groceries to 10 needy families in Grahamstown last Friday.

Grahamstown police spokesperson Captain Luvuyo Mjekula said the two parties started this initiative of assisting needy families last year.

He said two families whose homes were destroyed by fire in Transit Camp also benefited from this initiative.

“This year, a total of 10 families were assisted. Two of them were victims of a devastating fire.

“Transit Camp resident Vuyo Busakwe was left homeless and all his belongings were destroyed after a fire started next door and went on to his rented room burning it to the ground recently.

“His neighbours Bongilizwe Mvunywa and Nomvuzo Lalela’s room, where the blaze started, was also gutted and the couple lost all their possessions. An electrical fault had apparently caused the fire.

“The families were forced to ask relatives and neighbours for shelter. Busakwe and his wife now stay in the backyard of Makasi’s home for free, while the Mvunywa and Lalela families live in a relative’s backyard,” said Mjekula.

The Joza South African Police Service (SAPS) and Round Table 11 team also handed over food parcels to families headed by children and those who are struggling to make ends meet. Photo: Luvuyo Mjekula

The Joza SAPS led by Lieutenants Colonel Butch Strydom and Community Policing Forum Mbulelo Pika, Community Policing Forum leader Boniswa Makasi and Greg Wilmot of Round Table 11 were part of the team that went around the Grahamstown townships handing over the food parcels and clothing.

Wilmot said the team intends to make the donations an annual project: “It’s about combining two organisations that are trying to make a difference.”

He said the friendship between Wilmot and Strydom was the catalyst for the project.

Wilmot also explained that Round Table is a national organisation of people aged between 18 and 40.

Through the organisation’s project, Winter Nights, they collect donations and sponsorships in order to help change lives.

Strydom said the plan is to keep the partnership and the project going annually. All beneficiaries expressed gratitude to the two organisations.