With its many public holidays, South Africans celebrate the April and May holiday period every year and use this time to not only relax but also spend it with loved ones and family members. However, what about those who are without family? Many communities see children grow up without family members and elderly aging alone, but the Clover Mama Afrika’s take up the challenge and step in to make all members of their communities feel loved and cared for.
Clover Mama Afrika, Clover’s corporate sustainability initiative, is a community-led approach aimed at reducing poverty in neighbourhoods by empowering women and those around them to empower the generation that comes after them. And with the project running successfully since 2004 and hosting 440 training sessions with over 2313 beneficiaries over the years, the benefits of upskilling can be clearly seen.
Some of the Clover Mama Afrikas spent Easter as well as Family Day doing activities with children in their communities, visiting orphanages, visiting national monuments and learning about planting your own vegetables. Children were included in all the activities, to teach them various skills and to simultaneously make them feel part of the family.
Here is a snapshot of some of the activities:
Sipiwe Solomons from Hazyview
Mama Sipiwe Solomons from Hazyview decided to visit the local orphanage and spoil the little ones who live there. Every face was lit up with a smile on the day! Mama Sipiwe took time to teach the children how to plant vegetables and instructed each child on what to do, giving them special tasks in the garden. “The children were so excited to plant and grow their own vegetables and couldn’t believe how little effort was needed to have their own vegetable garden,” says Mama Sipiwe.
Mama Alinah Marumo from Welkom
Mama Alinah Marumo from Welkom took the children from her pre-school to visit the statue of Nelson Mandela in Bloemfontein over the Easter weekend. She said she and the children had lots of fun and she is looking forward to visiting the monument again later this year. The children were also spoilt with their own chocolate bunnies for Easter and couldn’t wait to bite into them!
“Our Clover Mama Afrikas are kind hearted, caring and passionate individuals and I really take my hat off to each and every one of them. They continuously go above and beyond to show love and compassion to others and really do such selfless work for the children and elderly. Especially over these holiday periods, these actions of love make a big difference. And they do it with a smile on their faces every single time!” says Prof Elain Vlok, Clover Manager, Clover Mama Afrika Trust.
