Volunteers jump in to fix East Rand Protective Workshop
The paintwork still has to be done and there is still other workshops and areas that need to be done
LOCAL resident Julie Reid and 27 volunteers stepped in and upgraded some of the facilities at the East Rand Protective Workshop for mentally handicapped adults in Pomona.
“My son is facilitated here. I attended the Earth Day event in April and going through each work area, it was an eye-opener seeing all the serious work to be done in each area. The workshop does not have funds for repairs available as all moneys are used to cover much needed payment of buses, petrol, food and so on,” said Reid.
“My mission was to uplift the spirit of these precious people and create a happy and cheerful working environment for all of them.”
Starting a WhatsApp chat group, Reid invited family members and friends for help and donations to upgrade the workshops and managed to get 27 people involved who offered to help with the contribution of funds and to do the actual work.
“We managed to collect R15 000 to purchase toilets, toilet seats, paint, painting accessories, worktops for basins and so on. Chemical deep cleaning was done on all the outside ablution blocks and residential bathrooms.”
Areas that were covered included two workshops and the women’s bathroom. The men’s bathroom took up a lot of time by replacing the toilets and basin tops.
“The paintwork still has to be done and there are still other workshops and areas that need attention. It would be great if we could arrange another session,” said Reid.
For any donations of further information, call her on 071-850-1822 or email julie.reid@transnet.net.
