Activist Graça Machel joins the Foundation's team in packing meals
The enthusiasm at the Sandton Convention Centre was palpable this morning as thousands packed meals for children in need.
Corporate and NGO volunteers from a range of South African business sectors rolled up their sleeves on 17 July and attacked the Stop Hunger Now challenge with gusto, packing box after box with nutritious meals that will feed 5 000 starving children every day over the next year.
In its third year, the Stop Hunger Now campaign has worked towards eradicating hunger in South Africa.
“Today is about living the legacy of Madiba. Our goal is to build food sustainability for 5 000 children, and every single corporate volunteer taking part today is feeding one child for an entire year,” said Stop Hunger Now CEO, Saira Khan.
The Nelson Mandela Foundation's team gets ready to pack hundreds of meals for children in need
“Over one million meals will go to various communities we’ve identified. We are continuously finding new beneficiaries that we can support through this campaign.”
Before the event kicked off, renowned activist and Stop Hunger Now ambassador, Graça Machel, thanked every sponsor and volunteer for getting involved.
“You are giving more than your time today, you are giving your heart – reaching out to those, your fellow humans, who go hungry every day. Many of us have never experienced that – to wake up in the morning and not even have a cup of tea or bread to eat.
CEO of Stop Hunger Now, Saira Khan
“Imagine being a mother in that situation, when the only thing you can give your children each day is a cup of water and you are forced to watch them starve.
“We work and look forward to the day when we don’t need to hold initiatives like this, because our country has managed to produce and make affordable food available to everyone,” said Machel.
“We look forward to the day we don’t have to worry that there are millions of South Africans who do not have food. In our everyday lives, we have to work to make sure that South Africa is a country of fairness and of plenty for everyone, so that we don’t have to Stop Hunger Now.”
Machel joined the Nelson Mandela Foundation team in packing more than a dozen boxes full of nutritious food, which will find their way to families in need this Mandela Day.
Chief strategy and marketing officer at Sun International, Rob Collins, remarked that in the true spirit of Madiba, we need to look beyond one day of working to make a difference.
“Remember, it’s not what you do today, it’s the next 364 days of remembering the importance and relevance of initiatives like this, and how we can sustain them.”
How are you making every day a Mandela Day? Create or join actions at www.mandeladay.com, and help inspire global change.
View a gallery of images from the morning below.
