White Ribbon rose for mum
PORTION TO CHARITY: TRUE SPIRIT OF MOTHER’S DAY
Collection supports organisations that help people in need.
Mother’s Day helps us to stop and appreciate our mothers; celebrating those who are still with us and remembering those who are not.
The celebration of mothers goes back thousands of years to ancient Greek and Roman festivals although the modern holiday originated in the US. The first Mother’s Day in the US was celebrated in 1908 and was a memorial service for Ann Reeves Jarvis, a peace activist who cared for the wounded on both sides of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of a campaign by her daughter Anna Jarvis to have a day set aside to honour, not only her mother, but all mothers for their influence in society. In later years, Anna Jarvis spoke out against the commercialisation of the holiday, although its original spirit can still be honoured. Traditionally, roses are named after people to honour them and in this country some esteemed mothers are among them. White ribbon roses: The most notable is the ‘Albertina Sisulu’ rose for the struggle stalwart for dedicating her life to mothering the nation, caring for many adopted children as well as anyone she met who was in need.
The rose was chosen by her children and presented to her as a surprise. Towards the end of their lives, she and her late husband, Walter, spent many hours in the garden, enjoying their shared love of roses. This creamy, white rose has a light fragrance and grows into a 1.5m high shrub rose with arching stems. A percentage of the purchase price of each rose goes to the Walter Sisulu Cardiac Centre for Africa at the Sunninghill Clinic in Johannesburg.
It is part of the White Ribbon Rose Collection that supports organisations that help women and children in need, victims of violence, the elderly, the homeless and the very ill.
These organisations have adopted a rose as a sign of hope and to raise funds for their work. It started when the Leigh Matthews Trust requested a rose in memory of the murdered student. The rose was named during the 16 days of Activism against Violence towards Women and Children and raises funds for two trauma centres in Johannesburg which give free counselling to victims of crime and violence.
There are many more roses like this, and the gift of such a rose,
which also contributes to a charitable institution, is in keeping with the spirit of Mother’s Day. These are some other roses in the White Ribbon Collection; ‘SOS Children’s Village’, ‘Vision in Sight’ (children with vision disabilities) ‘Mara Louw’ (child welfare), ‘Avril Elizabeth Home’ (for children), ‘Helen de Waal’ (Louis Botha Children’s Home), ‘Golden Oldie’ (Rand Aid), ‘Reach for Recovery (Breast Cancer Support Group) and ‘Parkinson’s Beauty’.