Volunteers at Bona Lesedi help patients and community see the light

Shoprite’s, We Stand by You initiative selects a different organisation for its Mandela Day contribution every year. This year, Shoprite and a group of associated contractors injected new life into Bona Lesedi’s facilities, painting, repairing and extending the therapy room and other buildings, as well as providing much-needed appliances and furniture.

Shoprite also organised a day of fun and activities for the centre’s care recipients to celebrate the memory of Madiba.

For 15 years, Bona Lesedi has contributed to the Diepsloot community by providing day care and therapy for a large and mixed group of disabled people from the township. Care recipients receive physiotherapy, and occupational and speech therapy in the warm and colourful environment of the centre, which is the only one of its kind in Diepsloot.

Bona Lesedi also provides home care for those who cannot be transported to the centre on a daily basis.

Founding member, Aggripa Thabede said disability was still a stigma in the Diepsloot community, and misunderstanding limits the amount of support Bona Lesedi receives. The centre runs a number of educational programmes to combat this problem, including antenatal classes for prospective parents, and engages with schools to help them recognise and manage disability.

Skills development programmes help integrate disabled people into the community, providing them with the means to become independent.

This year’s Mandela Day celebrations at Bona Lesedi reflected the impact that community-based initiatives, in conjunction with corporate initiatives, can have on the lives of the communities they serve.