Bucket Drive 2017

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During November and December an amazing campaign, CITYSERVE, is organised by City Story Durban.  Their goal every year is to unite hundreds of people for a week and give them the chance to bless and be blessed by those who are less fortunate, or those just in need of some extra support.  From the 26th November to the 2nd December, congregations of various churches were invited to engage with either a project that was organised through a church’s mission, or partner with one of CITYSERVE’s pre-identified projects (bucket drive, feeding schemes, night missions, street clean-ups, etc).

We are Durban is heavily involved in the annual Bucket Drive and work closely with Olive Tree Church (Florida Road, Kloof, Salt Rock).  Through this network over 700 buckets were packed with groceries and distributed to ten organisations!  We are grateful to everyone that got involved from buying a bucket and filling it with groceries or helping to check the contents of every bucket or driving to collect or deliver.  There were many tired bodies but the smiles and shouts of joy on the receiving end made it all worthwhile.

A special thank you to the businesses that were challenged and generously gave towards this project: Headwear 24, Illovo Sugar and VUM Insurance.

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Amashova 2017

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We had a small team of 17 cyclists rode the Amashova Cycle Race, on Sunday 22 October, in our beautiful jerseys to raise funds and awareness for the work we do.

This year, the funds they raised, will be used to develop a We are Durban Volunteer App to make volunteering in Durban easily accessible and more effective!  We will update you on how much was raised when all monies are collected.  The app is going to cost us in the region on R300,000. We have R50,000 in the bank and we are looking to raise the remaining amount.  Contact volunteer@wearedurban.com for more information on the app.

So we give a massive thank you to our cyclists, their seconds, generous sponsors and cheerleaders…well done for your efforts in making a change in Durban!

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June Volunteer Induction

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One of We are Durban’s goals for 2017 is to link more qualified professionals with heads of NPO’s to help encourage and develop their organisations to reach their full potential.  Regular conferences are hosted for Durban organisations and they are given the opportunity to request assistance in areas they believe are most pertinent for them and their continued success.  From the briefs received we are then able to connect a volunteer with them.

 

The latest Volunteer Induction evening was held on Monday, 12th June, at Olive Tree Church.  This was our second one this year, with our first batch of volunteers already impacting Durban. The aim of the event is to provide as much information as possible regarding the volunteering process and provide an opportunity to for interested individuals to see which organisation they feel most connected with.  Over 30 prospective volunteers attended the informative evening of how their involvement could make an impact within Durban’s NPO’s.

 

Information was provided on the various organisations requesting assistance and their specific need.  The most requested are for qualified marketers, financial advisors, legal consultants, business strategists and human resource agents.

 

Volunteers spent the evening learning about how to volunteer in a way that helps and not hurts, and the parameters in which a We are Durban volunteer serves.

 

At the end of the presentation there was an opportunity to sign up to an organisation, but the beauty of the induction evening was that no commitment was expected.  Some signed up immediately, others wanted to go home and think about it and others felt that this wasn’t what they expected and would prefer to donate their time in another capacity.

 

The evening was a success and we thank all those involved in setting up, serving and most importantly you, the enthusiastic volunteers, for attending and wanting to be a part of making Durban better, together.

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On Target

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Our second NPO Conference was hosted on 26 May 2017, with a great success. Forty different NPO’s from the Durban area came together for a day of mutual learning and networking around the topic of Marketing.  The conference was TARGET themed, creating an environment which helped the NPO leaders to start figuring out what their own “targets” are in their fundraising efforts.

We were fortunate to hear from actual donors; Norman Dorkin (who gives of his personal money into NPO efforts), David Gould (a director of three companies who give into registered PBO’s), and Kudzai Mqingwana (the CSI Manager for Sibaya Development Trust).  They shed light on what they donate toward, how you can attract their funding and what they want in return.

Other insightful speakers offered their expertise in the field of marketing.  Mia Ludick delivered a great introduction setting us up for thinking about our different targets.  Yasmin Kathoria from Innate Motion delved deeper into where companies, and especially fortune 500 companies, are going with their marketing strategies and what marketing is going to look like in five years.  This creates great opportunities for NPO’s to present campaigns and gain funding from these companies. Natalie Hopkins, Large Architects Marketing manager, and Michelle Govender, Bright Spark Communications founder, spent the most part of the afternoon attempting the mammoth task of sharing the basics of marketing so that the NPO’s could pick their next approach.

All-in-all the day was well received and we have had many organisations send their letters of appreciation.  A big thank you to our sponsors who made the day a success, Style Eyes of California and VUM.  We really appreciate what your companies are doing in the effort to make Durban all it is meant to be! 

Our next conference will be mid-August and focusing on the Organisational Structure and Administration aspects.  Sadly, in our rush of service delivery we forget the importance of our behind the scenes work and this inhibits our ability to attract great long term partners. We hope this conference will shed some light on simple, effective ways of making sure you achieve sustainability.

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Dignity Drive

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A big thank you to all who supported our dignity drive.  We received over 350 bags back which were distributed largely on two days in December.  The first was an early morning drop off on the 8th of December.  We met together loaded our cars and went to the streets searching for people in need.  It was wonderful watching in your rearview mirror as people opened up their bags – we saw big smiles, dancing and the occasional person trying to chase us down to say thank you.  Of course there were a few that were ungrateful and rude, but that doesn’t make us stop giving.  It just reminded us that when we receive that its not always because we asked or deserve good things  its just because the giver wants to give.

The second drop off happened at the Methodist feeding Scheme in Greyville. Up to 300 people come daily to the scheme to get a meal and on Thursday 10 December they received more thank what they came for.  Big smiles and dancing was seen again – and plenty of attempts to get a second bag.  Here we had a chance to chat with the people receiving the donations and even explain some of the products.  We expected questions on what the waterless hand cleanser was (an obvious luxury item)! When we explained it they men were thrilled! But the one thing that saddened me was the question of what is shampoo? this to me is not a luxury. this is something i don’t think twice about whether i should buy it or not – its a given!  A lesson in just how privileged we are… Dwight D. Eisenhower said “A people that values privileges above principles soon loses both”.  Let’s continue this year to be a people who give, who love the marginalised and care for those less fortunate and we will see Durban the way it was meant to be.

Amashova 2015

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This year’s Amashova saw fewer people donning the We are Durban jerseys due to the change in age limits by the organisers.  Due to safety reasons the Amashova organisers increased the age limit from 8 years old to 10 – which was really a good call!  This year we had 39 cyclists ride in the 3 different distances in the We are Durban colours.  The goal was to raise R160,000 this year in order to make 2 dreams a reality.  One was to provide a fully equipped containerised kitchen to a feeding scheme in KwaMashu, we had previously been given a quote of R60,000.00 for this.  The second was to provide a certified course in NPO Management to 30 NPO heads in the Durban area.

We sadly did not reach our dual goal, but the 39 people did an incredible job of raising R66217,7. We will be finalising the order of the kitchen shortly.  As soon as we have pictures of the kitchen we will post them for you…  Thank you cyclists for your commitment and effort!  A special mention must be made of Carmen de Lange who raised in excess of R10,000.00 on her own!  She has won a prize from Holomatrix.  Our other kind sponsors for the event which helped our team reach the end were; Future Life, Nature Zone Fitness Water and Blistex.  Thank you so much!



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Jungle Gym Assembly for Ukukhanya Creche

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We are Durban was recently donated a Jungle Gym by Embury College in Windermere, and we were able to pass this on to the Key of Hope Non-Profit Organisation. Key of Hope nominated the Ukukhanya Crèche in Newlands East as the recipient. We arranged for the disassembled Jungle Gym to be transported to the crèche, with a team of amazing volunteers to carry out the assembly on Saturday, 24th of October.

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On arrival in Newlands East we were confronted with what could be called, at best, a Jumble Gym and at worst, a pile of fire wood!

Although we had an idea of what the finished product should look like, we soon discovered that a few key structural components were missing, which made building the gym to its original design impossible.  Our team of volunteers took the decision to build the Jungle Gym using our collective imaginations – never say die! The ground was as tough as nails, resulting in one new pick handle being broken in two.

Testing of the new gym

After much blood sweat and tears, the holes were dug and we commenced with the building of a Jungle Gym with no clear picture of the end result in mind. However, everyone participated with great enthusiasm and the Jungle Gym soon started to take shape.

About six hours later the gym was completed and we invited the local children, who had been watching the building process with a keen interest, to try it out.  The children ran to the gym squealing in delight – it was a very heart warming moment for all the volunteers.  Needless to say, the kids (and our volunteers) spent a good while enjoying the fun gym that they had made!

Thank you so much to Embury College for this donation, and to our team of PHENOMENAL volunteers who gave up their Saturday to give the kids a fun place to play every day – you guys are amazing!

The A Team!

 

Quattro – Triad – We are Durban Golf Day

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The Quattro – Triad – We are Durban Golf Day was held at Kloof Country Club on Friday 16 October 2015.  The event was organized by We are Durban in aid of the Triad Special Needs School in Pinetown, with Quattro Finance as the main sponsor.

The Golf Day format was a Fourball Alliance, and we had a full field with 33 fourball teams joining us for the day.  Kloof Country Club graciously hosted us, with no green fees charged at all, and they were instrumental in organisation of the event, both leading up to and on the day.  Quattro consultants purchased the majority of our fourballs, and also sponsored three of the tee-boxes, giving out drinks to our thirsty golfers.  Our amazing sponsors on the course included Polo Pony Engen, Rawson Properties, Long & Associates, Durban Central Panel Beaters, Unocor Construction, Westville Locksmiths, Jaguar Land Rover Hillcrest, Toyota Hillcrest and Rohlig Grindrod Logistics. Triad organized a fun hole as well, where golfers played the hole using crutches or wearing an eye-patch, and they also set up the amazing gym equipment that was purchased from funds raised in the 2014 Golf Day.

We enjoyed a great lunch at the Halfway House, and a delicious lamb spit braai dinner organised by the Club and Gail Pederson, with the funds for the lamb spit donated by Westville Locksmiths.  After dinner and a fun chipping competition, prize giving was held with everyone standing a chance to win something – either through a fourball or individual prize, a fantastic raffle, the chipping competition, or various chance games played in prize giving.

The event was an incredible success, and has raised just over R110 000 (before expenses) for the Triad Special Needs School in Pinetown.  We were absolutely blown away by the generosity of our players and sponsors leading up to and during the event, which meant that we were able to raise so much more than we were anticipating.   We received a number of cash donations for the fundraiser, from Polyurethane Industrial Solutions, Quattro Life, Quattro Accounts, Oceanic Seagull Maritime and Rebcon Engineering.

We received some amazing prizes as donations from our sponsors, including FutureLife, VUM, Pick n Pay, Spar, Unilever, Telkom, Engen Polo Pony, Seacliff Estates, Caladdi B&B, Living Creations, Waxy O’Connors, Rohlig Grindrod Logistics, Audi, Makaranga Garden Lodge, Manoli’s Munchies, Q4 Prawns, Katiwe Necklaces, Comair, Protea Hotel, Esperanza Spa, Kim Wessels, Durban Central Panel Beaters, Lauren Galloway Photography, Victoria Verbaan and a number of anonymous donors.

The funds raised will be used for renovations required to provide additional classrooms facilities at the Triad School, which are much needed as the school is often not able to accommodate more children due to a lack of space and facilities.

Thank you to all of our players, sponsors and donors for your incredible generosity and contribution to this event, which will make a lasting difference in this phenomenal school.  A special thanks goes to Kloof Country Club for hosting us at no cost, to Quattro for playing a large role in organisation and sponsorship of the event, and to Michelle Seaton from the Triad School, who organised so many details of the day including sponsorships and prizes.  We are Durban is proud to have been involved in this fantastic fundraiser!

 

 

67 Market

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What a glorious day.  The weather was good.  The music was perfect.  The food was tasty. The sales were fantastic!  Thank you Durban for spending your 67 Minutes with us.  Through our Market we raised R16,639.76 (after expenses)! The money is going to go towards buying the building. The building will shortly be going on the market and we are wanting it for ourselves.  Having a home base that is ours will allow us to ensure that the work we do to uplift the NPO’s in eThekwini is sustainable in the long run.

A big thank you to everyone who donated goods, or cakes for us to sell.  Thank you to our Muso’s (Rene Tshiakanyi, Chloe Clark and James Jearey) who volunteered their time and talent to the day and did a great job of setting the scene for the day.  Illovo was super, they lent us their gazeboes  and spent the day making pancakes and crumpets and then donated all proceeds to us.  Thank you for your generosity! We were thrilled that “Eat your home”, “Home Slice” and “LegenDairy” could be present on the day, you certainly enhanced people’s experience of the market. Thank you.

Thank you to the volunteers who spent more than their 67 minutes helping out before and on the day.  And thank you Durbanites for spending more than your 67 Rand to help us make Durban all it was meant it be!

I Dare 2 Care

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On Friday 15 May 2015, We are Durban participated in the I Dare 2 Care Event, organized by I Care, in which approximately 1000 people spent a night sleeping on the streets of Durban to raise awareness for the plight of the homeless.

I Care is an NGO that has been transforming the lives of street children for 13 years with a number of programmes including outreach, rehabilitation, housing/shelter and skills development.  The aim of this event was to raise awareness for the homeless of Durban, to provide people with an opportunity to experience a little of what life is like as a homeless person in our city, and to raise money for I Care in maintaining their shelter facilities and ongoing implementation of their various programmes.
1000 people from all over Durban rallied together to participate in sleeping on the street for one night, and raised sponsorships from generous donors to contribute to I Care’s work in our city.  The event was hosted by eThekwini Municipality at the City Hall, with assistance by many role players including His People Church, Sanitech, Rescue Care, Blue Security and the Metro Police.  Those involved worked phenomenally hard to make sure that the event was safe and ran smoothly. Representatives from various organisations were present with facilities available to educate the local homeless people about the various health and wellbeing services available to them and how they can access these. I Care also collected donations of blankets in the morning to distribute amongst the needy.

It was an incredibly successful and enlightening event, and We are Durban are proud to have been a part of it! We all had an opportunity to share a meal and conversation with homeless people in the area, and I’m sure that all involved have come away with a very different perspective on social needs in our city, as well as with a massive appreciation for all that we have. The daring courage of those participating also went a long way in raising awareness far and wide, and many generous donations have been received from international sponsors.

We are Durban would like to say huge WELL DONE to all of our volunteers that joined in, to all those who gave of their time, skills and resources to make the event happen, and to I Care for organising such a terrific event!