Teen raises money for rhinos
A TEENAGER who chose to help save rhinos instead of having a birthday party has raised more than R200000 for wildlife conservation.
Jules Murray, 15, was 11 when she started fundraising. She had been living in Hong Kong since the age of three and yearned to connect with her home country, South Africa.
Instead of hosting friends to a birthday party, she had decided to invite friends over to create about 15 rhino paintings, which she auctioned, raising R30 000.
“At the time all my friends were asking for money to give to charity and because my mom had told me about the plight faced by rhino, which are symbolic for South Africa, and of course Asia being the biggest place for rhino horn trade for medicinal purposes, I decided to focus on that.”
The money was handed to the Chipembere Rhino Foundation and was used to buy tracking collars for the wild animals.
Yesterday, Greeff Properties handed over a life-size rhino sculpture to her which they hoped would help Jules raise more funds for the animals.
Last year, Greeff Properties ran a rhino awareness campaign, where “Greefie” the rhino was showcased at the company’s monthly mall expos. As part of the awareness campaign, the company donated a portion of their home sales commission to the Rhino Wildlife Conservation Fund.
Chief executive Mike Greeff said: “We are handing Greefie over to Jules so that she can be the next guardian. We know that she will continue the rhino saving legacy.”
Speaking of her first encounter with a rhino while on a collar tracking expedition with a veterinarian, Jules remembered the rhino as “giant yet gentle animal”.
● To make a donation, go to JuMu Rhino Fund Facebook page.