After a very tough 2020, this week, the Clover Mama Afrika team held an intimate Smarties Week awards ceremony to celebrate each of the phenomenal women who form part of the Clover Mama Afrika project. While 2020 brought forth challenges, especially in the communities which these Mamas live, each of them battled their way through to make the year the most successful it could be.
At their 14th annual Smarties Week Awards ceremony held at the Wilderness beach Hotel in Wilderness, Prof Elain Vlok, Clover Manager, Clover Mama Afrika Trust, praised the Mamas in attendance. The Smarties Week Award ceremony is about recognising the selfless work that our Clover Mama Afrikas do within their communities and the progress they have achieved with their projects over the last year. The awards evening also gives them the opportunity to acknowledge the very individuals that has helped the project achieve the success it is today.
The week prior to the awards, the Mamas were finally able to travel for Smarties Week training, where they worked hard to learn and improve. This was the first in-person training session since the pandemic hit, which made it extra special. During the week spent in Wilderness, all the Clover Mama Afrikas enjoyed days filled with training, some surprises, and some serious discussions about the past year and the year ahead.
The Clover Mama Afrikas were welcomed with a special room drop that included a Caftan dress co-sponsored by Fluidity that was worn at the welcome dinner. In the spirit of local tourism, the Clover Mama Afrikas were also taken to the quaint George market during the weekend, where they entertained the visitors with songs on invitation of the market owner. Other days were met with social distanced mosaic classes, hand sewing and other educational activities.
“2020 had its challenges but these challenges were turned into opportunities which we are very proud of. We all had to do things differently which we did by turning training sessions into virtual training sessions and with that, we still provided eight skills training courses in the short time we had before Covid-19 arrived in SA. The results were impressive to say the least and this leads us now to thank our project partners that enabled us to do so much more during 2020,” explains Prof Elain Vlok, Clover Manager, Clover Mama Afrika Trust.
The top Mamas were awarded with the following awards:
Top Cleanliness & Hygiene Award
The Top Cleanliness & Hygiene Award is sponsored by MiX Telematics and is awarded to Mamas that have the cleanest centres which depicts a healthy environment for all.
There was one outstanding winner for this category and that is the Ultimate Cleanliness & Hygiene Top Award which was awarded to Mama Dorah Semenya from Seshego in Limpopo.
Special Recognition Award: Mama Alinah Marumo (Thabong, Free State)
The Special Recognition Award was given to Mama Alinah Marumo from Thabong in the Free State for overcoming many challenges over the years but always having a positive attitude and eagerness to do the good work in her community. Her centre is pristine with a good infrastructure in place.
Above and Beyond Award: Mama Mirriam Toni (Mbekweni, Western Cape), Selestien Moses (Ashbury, Western Cape) and Sipiwe Solomons (Hazyview, Mpumalanga)
The Above and Beyond Award was given to three Clover Mamas who have each gone above and beyond of what is expected of their normal responsibilities and have been innovative in tackling challenges and turning them into opportunities for all.
Entrepreneur of the Year Award: Mama Mary Lwate (Winterveld, Gauteng)
The Entrepreneur of the Year Award recognises the entrepreneurship qualities of this particular Mama and that she is continuously pushing her fellow members to see their full potential. She empowers them to reach new heights with their respective skills.
Business Mama of the Year Award: Mama Mirriam Makamu (Tembisa, Gauteng)
Mama Mirriam Makamu is recognised for having excellent business management skills. She uses the bakery’s profit to revamp and improve the building and is responsible in paying monthly salaries to over 40 workers and is very deserving of the Business Mama of the Year Award.
Most Improved Award: Mama Daphne Oliphant (Roodewal, Western Cape)
Mama Daphne Oliphant received this award for learning that through hard work, commitment, and dedication, you will be able to get anywhere in life. She has turned her projects around and focused on what is feasible for her centre and her workers and made such a success out of her centre.
Top Achiever of the Year Award: Mama Felicity Maluleke (Soweto, Gauteng)
Mama Felicity Maluleke from Soweto was awarded with the Top Achiever of the Year Award for always having a positive attitude and always being eager to meet her communities’ need and provides the necessary affordable services at all times.
Performer Extraordinaire Award: Mama Glenrose Mashiqa (Mdantsane, Eastern Cape)
Mama Glenrose is this year’s Performer Extraordinaire and meets all the projects’ objectives beyond all expectations. They say that dynamite comes in small packages and this Mama is definitely dynamic. She has a solid infrastructure in place and provides consistency in all that she does. She is well-known for her strong educational program that she provides the very young in her care.
“We are so proud of our Mama Afrikas and the passion, love and complete dedication they put into everything that they do. We would not be Clover Mama Afrika without these amazing women and they never fail to impress us and make us proud!” says Prof Elain Vlok, Clover Manager, Clover Mama Afrika Trust.
