Hope restored at Dorah’s Ark on Mandela Day
"We came again this year because we saw that they needed our assistance in terms of mattresses, so as colleagues we contributed close to R10 000 just to get the mattresses and the basic stuff."
Each year, on the day of Nelson Mandela’s birthday, Mandela Day is celebrated across the world.
It is not a public holiday, but rather a day to honour the legacy and values of the man through giving to the community.
On Monday, July 18 a group of colleagues from ABSA took it upon themselves to contribute to Dorah’s Ark Children’s Home and place of Safety by volunteering their time, raising funds and donating what they could to help the needy.
One of the organisers Melinda Ntshalintshali told the Record that in support of Mandela Day they urged the community to participate in interventions that would assist homes like Dorah’s Ark that bring hope to vulnerable children.
“We are here as a group of individuals from our organisation who have seen the need. When we initially came here two years ago we were about 15 people, and we provided the home with the basics they needed.
“We came again this year because we saw that they needed our assistance in terms of mattresses, so as colleagues we contributed close to R10 000 just to get the mattresses and the basic stuff.
“We are also here to enjoy the day with the children and cater for them because it is all about giving back our time to the community,” said Ntshalintshali.
The 2022 Mandela Day theme is ‘Do what you can, with what you have, wherever you are’. This encouraged community members to look around them as likely there was someone in need on their doorstep, and do what they could to make a difference, no matter how small.
Dorah’s Ark Children’s Home is dedicated to all those children ever labelled as ‘orphans’ with the added hope that they will never be forgotten.
