Work together to honour Madiba

There’s no shortage of ways to celebrate his 67 years of selfless service Opportunity to express ubuntu

THE INDEPENDENT Media Mandela Day staff initiative’s theme for this year is #ActionAgainstPoverty.

Staff members will gather at the canteen at Newspaper House at 9am on Tuesday, where we will make sandwiches.

You can assist by donating R6.70 or R7. In addition you can donate bread, peanut butter, jam, butter or margarine, polony (halaal please) and sandwich bags/ barrier bags.

Money can be dropped off at the marketing department where receipts will be issued. THE DESMOND and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation will honour Madiba’s spirit by serving soup in and around the Grand Parade in the city centre.

Youth@ Work participants and the foundation’s staff will serve soup to those in need of a warm meal.

Mbulelo Bikini, the foundation’s chief executive, commended the Nelson Mandela International Day for a spirit of spreading warm cheer.

He quoted Desmond Tutu as saying: “Mandela Day focuses our attention on each other and our responsibilities to live Madiba’s legacy forever through the work we all do.

“We are members of one family, the human family, God’s

Di McMahon and Danny Oosthuizen from the Cape Argus Dignity Project together with Cape Argus live editor Lance Witten will hand out the sandwiches.

We’re also asking suppliers, partners, clients and advertisers to purchase 67 copies of the Cape Times, Cape Argus or Weekend Argus, enabling these newspapers to donate 50% of the purchase price to the Saartjie Baartman Centre for Women and Children, Nazareth House, Khulisa Social Solutions, Margaret’s House and PDSA Animal Shelter.

The Saartjie Baartman Centre offers support to 120 women and children and Margaret’s house is a registered non-profit residential centre in Lansdowne for abandoned or abused boys.

Good Samaritans around the country will heed the call to dedicate 67 minutes of their time towards a worthy cause on Tuesday, July 18, in honour of Nelson Mandela.

The day, which is Mandela’s birthday, was officially adopted by the UN as an international humanity, as Madiba did, and do something kind for someone else every day?”

Bikini echoed this sentiment, saying Mandela Day provided an opportunity to express the spirit of ubuntu, “which welcomes foreigners into our homes because they are fellow human beings not because they are known to us”.

Toughees school shoes maker, Bata, is calling on the public to identify 67 schools nationwide who are in desperate need of school shoes.

The public can recommend their school by visiting Toughees Facebook Page, using the hashtag #Bata67Steps.

Khutjo Madisha, Toughees brand manager at Bata South Africa, said the company had pledged to assist day in November 2009.

It’s since become a day on which people around the world, and especially in South Africa, honour his 67 years of dedication towards freedom and democracy by devoting 67 minutes towards a positive initiative.

According to the Nelson Mandela Foundation, “the celebration of Mandela Day aims to serve as a global call to action for people to recognise their individual power to make an imprint and help change the world around them for the better”. 4 489 pupils from around the country.

“( The campaign) is about giving children their pride back and giving them confidence to achieve their dreams.”

Bata South Africa is also willing to support organisations who want to donate school shoes, by extending a discount on bulk purchases.

For more information, you can go to any Bata retail store or call the head office on (031) 701 4951.

There will be no shortage of events in and around the Western Cape this year, to ensure Capetonians can do their bit to celebrate the revered former statesman.

From local buskers to hospitality management training for the less fortunate, to comedians keeping audiences in stitches while rais- ing money for a good cause, the Mother City will be abuzz with worthwhile initiatives. A group of 67 buskers will be “Making Music for Madiba” across 67 locations as part of the first mass busking event in honour of Madiba. Young and old, amateur and pro, famous and obscure, will take to the streets at noon on Mandela Day and will even include some of Cape Town’s most loved bands, such as Majozi, Michael Low- man, Jarrod Aston from the band Cinema and Craig Hinds from South Africa’s top acoustic band, Watershed, who will busk around the city, including the Waterfront, Gardens Centre, Howard Centre in Pinelands and Cape Gate.

Three candidates from the Fisantekraal Centre for Development near Durbanville will be offered a 67-day on-the job training at the Pepper Club Hotel and Spa in the CBD.

According to spokeswoman Reabetswe Madumo, the programme will skill the candi- dates in a variety of disciplines within the hospitality industry “with the end goal of assisting and guiding these individuals in launching their careers in hospitality”.

A newly established monthly comedy show, Fork and Comedy, is set to host a #ComedyGivesBack showcase to coincide with Mandela Day.

Some of the comedians to look forward to include Rob Van Vuuren, Dalin Oliver, KG, Lungelo Ndlovu, Devin Gray and Paul Cowan.

Tickets for the #ComedyGivesBack event are R50 and all proceeds go towards buying sanitary products for the Girls In School initiative.