In 2014, Solidarity Helping Hand implemented more than 1 300 projects, thereby drastically changing the lives of thousands of impoverished people.
Helping Hand plans to launch even more projects in 2015 in order to prevent and alleviate poverty.
This was also the year during which the non-profit organisation achieved the huge milestone of having 30 000 supporters.
From April to June, Helping Hand provided emergency aid to the value of more than R2-million to non-strikers in the Platinum Belt after the ongoing strike brought the region to its knees.
During this time, the organisation distributed 150 tons of food to about 1 000 families.
Through this project, more than R1.3-m was raised for the non-strikers and the funds were used for the distribution of food, the purchase of essential provisions, feeding schemes at schools, the establishment of a bursary fund and assistance to learners by means of psychometric tests.
Helping Hand’s Afrikaans Bursary Institute awarded study loans to the value of more than R16.6-m to 948 students.
In addition, 80 teaching assistants were employed at more than 40 schools in order to gain valuable work experience and to provide additional support to almost 12 000 pupils.
This year, more than R700 000 was invested in these assistants.
Approximately 4 000 preschool children have been fed through Helping Hand’s national Lunchbox Project this year, while about 1 000 parents and teachers received parental guidance through this project.
The Schoolbag Project ensured that 4 600 needy Grade Ones received brand-new schoolbags with the necessary stationary, while more than 100 children underwent psychometric testing and received career guidance through Helping Hand in 2014.
Helping Hand’s Association for Afrikaans Mathematics Teachers (VAW) had a busy year as 19 mathematics training courses were presented to almost 500 teachers.
The assistance that mathematics teachers received, therefore reached about 47 000 pupils, thereby helping to address the crisis in mathematics teaching in schools.
This year, Helping Hand also invested in entrepreneurship and job creation in particular.
By means of the Project of the Year initiative, 100 permanent jobs have been created and young entrepreneurs have received almost R50 000.
Hundreds of elderly people were supported by Helping Hand throughout the year by means of various community and national projects.
Through the Companionship Project, whereby someone in the community provides support to elderly persons not living in old-age homes, 43 elderly people in rural towns are currently receiving support and meals.
Elderly people running community projects themselves have been nominated for the Silver Crown Award.
This year’s winner, Cornelius Swart (68), is in charge of the distribution of food parcels to 70 families in the Gonubie area.
“All we can do is to thank our supporters for their generous contributions and firm belief in the work that we do,” said Dr Danie Brink, chief executive of Helping Hand.
“However, our work is far from finished.
“There are still many households in the country where poverty persists behind closed doors and it is Helping Hand’s goal to intervene there as well and to alleviate and prevent poverty, and to help people to break free from poverty.
“We are looking forward to an even greater year in 2015.”
