Sweetest day welcomed at Bryanston for CHOC
BRYANSTON – The 16th annual Cup-4-Cancer drive took place at Bryanston Primary School on 31 May, and this year the parents and children involved also collected plush toys for children in need.
‘Supporting the fighters, admiring survivors, honoring the taken and never giving up hope, joining the fight against cancer together’ – This is the mantra embraced by the learners and parents of Bryanston Primary School as they rallied against cancer during their 16th annual Cup-4-Cancer drive on 31 May.
Described as the sweetest day of the year at the school, this is an event that the children look forward to, not only for the tastiest of cupcakes and the hot chocolate but also to make a difference in the lives of children suffering from cancer. Representatives from the Childhood Cancer Foundation (CHOC) and ER24 were there on the day to serve sweets and drive awareness too.
The success of the event relies on the learners and their parents donating the hot chocolate, coffee, milk and cupcakes in order for the school community to buy it back for R20 per cup and cake to raise money and awareness for CHOC.
The organisation was established in 1979 as a support group to parents of children with cancer. Parents who had experienced the immense emotional and financial toll that cancer takes, recognised that there is more than one victim in the family of a child with cancer. Their aim was to ease the burden on parents facing the same journey by providing access to relevant, accurate information as well as emotional and practical support.
“Bryanston gave us such a warm welcome to their school,” said Brenda Herbert, ward mother from CHOC.
“The children were all so polite and kind and it is such a pleasure to see. We will use this generous gift from Bryanston Primary to provide accommodation for the children and their caregivers at the CHOC House in Saxonwold.
“So many young patients need to travel far distances to receive life-saving treatment and we’re happy to provide them with a home away from home while they undergo harsh treatment over weeks and months. Last year, we were able to accommodate 90 young patients with generous contributions like this from Bryanston Primary School.”
Morne Marx, the acting principal of the school was impressed with the level of support. “This year we had many families across all grades contributing to the worthwhile cause.
“Some families donated over 100 cupcakes each and we eventually had more than 1 200 cupcakes to go with all the hot chocolate and coffee. We only hope that the funds raised with this level of sweet generosity will be met with some smiles and hope for the many children suffering from this terrible disease, cancer.”
A whopping total of R18 500 was raised this year for the CHOC Foundation from Cup-4-Cancer. All funds raised will go towards practical support initiatives for cancer patients such as care bags, out-patient refreshments and cleaning materials.
This year, another initiative on the day was driven by sisters Nicola and Amelia Blazeby, where they called on fellow learners and their families to help in collecting soft toys and teddies for CHOC, the Steve Biko Children’s Hospital and for ER24 to give to young patients. This drive was extended by generous support from Bryanston High School families as well. Over 220 teddies were collected and handed over on the day.
“This is a great initiative, which can raise the hopes of those who need it. The teddy bears donated to ER24 for our emergency vehicles will play a great role to the ‘little’ patients we may treat,” said ER24 spokesperson Russel Meiring.
“These teddy bears can be given to comfort the children that have been in an emergency, which can be a very traumatic experience. Thank you to all those involved for such an amazing initiative.”
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