Our Projects...

GLOBAL GRANT: NEW BRONCHOSCOPE FOR TYGERBERG CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL

23 January 2020

After three years of sustained fund-raising, with the help of local and international Rotary Clubs, Districts and generous donors which enabled us to use a Rotary International Global Grant, we purchased a R3 million bronchoscope, the only one in Africa. It will enable surgeons to go down the airway to obtain samples from children’s airways rather than performing invasive open chest surgeries. It will help with the treatment of drug-resistant TB, cystic fibrosis and HIV/Aids related lung diseases in children. The Tygerberg Children’s Hospital treats children from all over South Africa and also neighbouring countries.

FOOD FOR NEEDY PENSIONERS

We ran our annual Christmas Food Collections, in local shopping centres, to collect enough groceries to make up roughly 100 food parcels for pensioners in need over the Festive Season.  We collected an impressive amount of food and our sincerest gratitude to the Pick ‘n Pay Centre, Table View, the Superspar in Parklands and the West Coast Village Shopping Centre – and to the very generous shoppers who made this possible.

LUKHANYO SOCIAL FOR VISUALLY CHALLENGED

27 JULY 2019

For many years, we have assisted the Lukhanyo Association for the Blind with the socials they hold for disadvantaged visually challenged people.  We  serve them and their helpers and children a hearty meal, sandwiches,  cool drinks, fruit and doughnuts.  Sometimes there is music to brighten up the event, and afterwards we send them home with a package of food.  It is also an opportunity for Lukhanyo to update the membership of the visually challenged.

PAINTING PARTY AT JELLY BEANZ

1 – 2 JUNE 2019

Jelly Beanz is an organisation that helping children who have experienced abuse & neglect and also assist the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit of the Milnerton Police service. The area they use at the Milnerton police station was badly in need of refurbishment, so some of us spent 2 days painting a room & some doors.

TOYS FOR TYGERBERG CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL

20 APRIL 2019
We have an ongoing relationship with the Tygerberg Children’s Hospital , having donated many pieces of specialist medical equipment and continuing to donate towards a soup kitchen for visiting families in need. Sometimes we are able to donate toys to the children and we last did this in December. Here we see a family and their child with a new toy.

EASTER PARTY AT CRECHE

16 APRIL 2019

A small but heart-warming project is our Easter Party for the youngsters at Teddy Den Creche, which is in a deprived area. Our members personally contribute sweet treats and Easter eggs.  This year, the staff took advantage of the good weather to hold the party in the playground, which our club has improved in years past.

LOCAL CHARITY NETWORKING

8 MARCH 2019

Blouberg Rotarian Alice was inspired, ten years ago, to bring together many local charities, community organisations and NPOs so that they could network, trade information and resources and strengthen each other.  The last decade has seen them benefit in innumerable ways as they face the joint challenges of caring for those in need in difficult economic times.  Here we see Blouberg Rotarians with community workers.

LITERACY AT VAATJIE PRIMARY

8 FEBRUARY 2019

South Africa faces many challenges in overcoming literacy shortfalls, and in response we have launched a literacy project at the Vaatjie Primary School. Together with some of our Interact Clubs, we have collected 800 reading books.  On the 8^th, we handed over about 500 to the school. We plan, together with the Interactors, to visit the school once a month to read to the learners to show them the joy of reading.  There is now a weekly reading period to reinforce this.  At our District 9350 Conference in May, Blouberg International School Interact was awarded BEST YOUTH SERVICES PROJECT for this initiative.

CAPE TOWN SOCIETY FOR THE BLIND

31 JANUARY 2019

We visited the Cape Town Society for the Blind to see what they do for the visually challenged in Cape Town, and also to see the new equipment which has been purchased through a Global Grant, which involved the Fredericksburg Morning Rotary Club, Districts 5840 & 5890 (USA), our own District 9350 and Rotary International.  The new equipment includes materials for loom & weaving training, a sewing machine, computers & chairs, a brailler, equipment for their coffee shop, which is staffed by their own baristas, and a map app for the blind on their phones.

CHRISTMAS PARTY FOR CHILDREN

1 DECEMBER 2018

One of our favourite projects is our Children’s Christmas Party, where we host over 300 underprivileged children for a day of fun & laughter.  They play on 3 bouncy castles, experience cart-rides, have their faces painted, play soccer, enjoy snacks, burgers and chips, are treated to a magic show and . . . at last . . . receive presents from Father Christmas, who this year arrived in a beautiful luxury car.  We could not do it at all without the help of a small army of Interactors and Rotaractors. This is the best possible start to our Festive Season.

FOOD PARCELS FOR CHRISTMAS

NOVEMBER and DECEMBER

Every year, it becomes more difficult for many people to make ends meet, including our local old age pensioners.  To give them a happier Festive Season, we hold food collections near local Pick ‘n Pay and Spar supermarkets and ask generous shoppers to donate us food.  We sort and pack the groceries into beautiful re-useable bags donated by Woolworths and deliver them ourselves to the recipients, who are very grateful. On their behalf, thank you to the generous shoppers in our area.  You made a wonderful difference.

SHOES TO NEEDY LEARNERS

25 OCTOBER 2018

We applied for a District Grant to buy shoes for learners in need, and delivered the shoes to one of two selected schools on the 25th, all carefully marked in the correct sizes. Three Rotarians and a friend handed out the shoes, which were received with delight by the learners.

CHESHIRE HOMES FETE

28 & 29 SEPTEMBER 2018
We look forward every year to selling delicious burgers and crispy chips at the annual Cheshire Homes Fete – we donate all our earnings to them.  The fete also offers a variety of other foods, second-hand goods and clothing, fresh veggies, garden plants and artwork by the residents.  The residents enjoy hosting members of the public and interacting with them.  This year, we earned R7 400 (up from last year), while the fete overall earned R156 000 for Cheshire Homes.

ONE TO ONE IN CAPE TOWN

19 AUGUST 2018

One of the most heart-warming of our projects is to participate in Cape Town’s annual One to One, which brings together many different charity, social and religious organisations to create a day of enchantment for approx. 3 400 people with mental & physical disabilities.  Each organisation runs a stall with a simple game and prizes. Our stall is a board on which you roll balls to go into differently coloured depressions. We are proud that Blouberg Rotaract and our Curro, Milnerton and Parklands Interact Clubs also ran their own stalls, while other Interactors helped out.

SPOIL PARTY FOR LESS FORTUNATE

18 AUGUST 2018

Our annual Spoil Party for people with disabilities and the elderly is eagerly anticipated by our less sighted, wheelchair bound & elderly friends.  We host about 150 guests to a day of delicious refreshments & live entertainment.  We transport some of them to the venue & assist with serving them.  The venue is the Italian Club and this year, local Italian singer Lorenzo treated us to 2 popular Italian songs.  Blind DJ Gary & other gifted singers added to the day. One of our visually challenged guests was ‘Princess’ Schroeder, South African Sportswoman of the Year with a Disability.

HARLEY BLANKET RUN

13 MAY 2018

We were overjoyed to revive our relationship with the Harley Owners Group by holding a joint Blanket Run in order to give blankets to needy children and to raise funds for our charity fund.  The third partner was Table Bay Mall, who hosted the end of the ride, organised much of the publicity and donated prizes.  We thank all the Harley and other bike riders who participated. We were able to donate 400 blankets to needy children at TLC and Wolwerivier.

TREE PLANTING AT CURRO HIGH SCHOOL

21 MARCH 2018

Rotary International President Ian Riseley 2017 / 2018 encouraged Rotarians to plant 1 million 200 000 trees in his year – one for each Rotarian worldwide.  We were proud to participate and duly planted 36 trees at Curro High School.  Curro High Interact was our partner and the Interactors will ensure that the trees are well cared for.  Bearing in mind the unprecedented drought we experienced, the trees are extremely hardy, water-wise Spekboom trees.

ZUSAKHE CRÈCHE RENOVATION

15 FEBRUARY 2018

After some delays due to planning permission glitches, we were very proud to open the newly renovated Zusakhe HIV / Aids Educare Centre in Du Noon informal settlement. The CIPLA Foundation was our partner, and also Rotary clubs and caring individuals in Canada, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom and the USA. New structures were built, a courtyard roof to regulate temperature and provide shelter was added, and s a new ablution block. Zusakhe is now the only Crèche in Du Noon which has been approved by the Social Development Dept. & Early Childhood Development.

ROTARY FAMILY HEALTH DAYS

5 and 6 OCTOBER 2017
Every year, Rotary clubs in South Africa & other African nations hold Family Health Days for three days. In conjunction with health services, Rotary organises three days of free health checks, consultations & inoculations in nearby deprived communities. We use the community hall in Du Noon informal settlement to host TB and HIV testing with the relevant NGO, professional eye testing and health scans and counselling services, together with handouts of fruit, soap and condoms.

CAREERS EVENING BUREN HIGH

31 JULY 2017

We organised a Careers Evening during which 15 speakers addressed interested learners on potential careers. Professions covered this year were accounting, business, professional cookery, electrics, fashion design, the health profession, hotel management,  IT work, journalism, law, law enforcement,  mechanics, panel-beating, sound technology & sports technology.

DONATION TO KNYSNA

JUNE 2017

Like the rest of South Africa, we were shocked at the catastrophic fire, caused by extreme weather, which destroyed so many homes & businesses in the town of Knysna. Blouberg Rotary responded to an appeal to make a donation to the Rotary Club of Knysna, to assist the people there. We donated R20 000. SEPTEMBER 2017 UPDATE FROM KNYSNA: The Rotary Club of Knysna distributed over R1,9 million of donations to recipients in need.