After the rise of the water level of the Vaal River resulted in a sudden change of plan for 48 St Johns students looking forward to visit Parys once again to bless the community with selfless hours of voluntarily work, it soon became clear that not even the masses of water could keep these youngsters away from the town and community that touched their hearts over the past years.

After pleading and begging from the learners, Community Hours and the St John’s parents managed to pull together two dates for smaller groups to visit the town during their holiday. Over the weekend, the first group of 20 volunteers arrived at the Golden Eagle Residential Camp. They volunteered at Ebenezer Hannah Home, preparing lunch for the residents, baking bread, making Chelsea buns, gardening, and helping with clothes distribution. On Sunday, the group visited Vredefort, cooking lunch and hosting a clothing ‘shop’ at Hartshuis.

Early Monday morning, they took to the streets of Parys to clean up, and planted five River Bushwillows donated by DESTEA on the sportsground next to the library. Thereafter, they enjoyed river rafting and stargazing in the Vredefort Koepel.

Tuesday was marked as one of the highlights, playing soccer with the community of Tumahole.
Their holiday activities were wrapped up with a visit to the SPCA for more voluntary work before lunch at the Sourdough bakery.

According to Community Hours’ Sarah Walton Blake, a second camp will be held in Parys from April 28 to May 2, bringing another 20 learners to Parys, touching hearts and changing lives.

After all, volunteering should never be a grudge action – it should be done with a full heart. These children can vouch for being rewarded in so many ways while volunteering in Parys. They worked with local angels, learnt skills, and spent meaningful time with organisations and people who run them – making friends, and showing them the many guises volunteerism can take.