Pretoria residents gather more than R300 000 for Free State farmers
These were gathered and packaged at the Uitkyk supermarket in Silverton on Thursday morning.
An initiative by ward councillors in the east of Pretoria saw farmers in the Free State getting some relief following a fire that ravaged their produce and killed their livestock.
Under the #WeCare banner, more than R300 000 worth of groceries and toiletries were gathered through donations from Pretoria residents.
These were gathered and packaged at the Uitkyk supermarket in Silverton on Thursday morning.
On 21 October a fire broke out in the Christiana, Hoopstad and Hertzogville areas in Free State, destroying 100 000ha of farmland. This prompted the Pretoria councillors to act.
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“Crops were destroyed and animals had to be put down as a result of the fire,” said one of the ward councillors involved, Siobhan Muller.
“All the groceries and toiletries will go to the affected farmers and their workers in those areas.
“There will also be food for the animals that survived the fire because the farmers don’t have any feed.”
Muller said the initiative was aimed at reaching out to those in need and offering comfort in difficult situations.
She said during the lockdown, various communities benefited from the initiative, bringing joy to many families.
Since the news of the Free State fire broke, Muller said in less than a week the money had already reached R200 000 from people from all over Pretoria and surroundings.
“The response from the community was heartwarming. I am speechless and yet so grateful to our communities.
“We are making a difference because #WeCare,” she said.
Each farmer would get two boxes, one with non-perishables such as sugar, canned food, tea bags, maize meal, flower and coffee and the other packed with toiletries, washing powder and sanitary pads for female workers.
Residents from various parts of Pretoria joined hands in helping to pack the groceries into boxes and loading them onto trucks.
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Another ward councillor Ben Chapman said the initiative had initially looked at providing relief for underprivileged communities during the pandemic and has since looked into helping anyone that was in need at any time.
“There were so many people who were in need during the higher levels of lockdown and we saw a need for us to do what we were called to do,” he said.
“I am so glad many people got food through our programme and many others will continue to get food.
“And it is members of the community, ordinary people that make this happen.”
Once the items were packaged and packed, they were delivered to the AfriForum who would transport them to the Free State.
Uitkyk supermarket, which doubled the money gathered by the community, was also thanked for its contribution.
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