EARTH Centre wraps up the year at AGM

Board members at the EARTH Centre in Ruimsig held their annual general meeting on November 20 to reflect on the year that was and look to the future.

Andre Joubert acknowledged that the golf day, and annual fun and market day had to be cancelled due to the Covid-19. “2020 ended with a coffee morning for clients, supporters and volunteers. The drumming fundraising events continued to be well-supported despite the reduced numbers as per regulations. We are grateful to our donors who assisted us in developing an app for instructors to log rider progress which also helps in collecting rider statistics.” Andre thanked the Nedbank Local Heroes for transforming one of the storage spaces into a therapy room and for the donations received through the Local Heroes programme which enabled them to upgrade one of the bathroom facilities for the disabled.

Head instructor, Wihan Ras said what stood out from the previous year was that even with lockdown restrictions, the centre did not stand still. “We continued working; we started with virtual sessions for our riders and this allowed us to do our work and engage with our instructors all while sitting at home. With the help of our marketing manager we pulled together quite a nice series of lessons and as soon as we were back and able to work, we started bringing some expertise to the centre in Soweto. This enabled them to do their work through our knowledge.” Wihan said the new life changes that came with the pandemic meant they had to broaden their scope as well as growth, and find new ways to reach out to clients and the community.

“At the beginning of 2020 we had 71 active volunteers,” marketing and HR manager Nicole Ras began. “We trained 40 new volunteers and the retention rate from 2019 to 2020 was 51%. Volunteers assist with a variety of things, the most important being leading in lessons.” They can get involved in other areas as well, including repairs, maintenance and fundraising, and use other special skills such as photography, graphic design and ICT.

Three new board members, Musawenkosi Xulu, Mpho Modisaesi and Zwannda Mukwevho were also announced.

Contact the EARTH Centre on 011 958 5044