Malacca Informal Settlement in Redhill, Durban warmly received hordes of enthusiastic staff from multiple businesses within Innova Haus in Umdloti as part of a Mandela Day initiative driven by Devmco Group and the Seed Fund NPO on Thursday, 18 July 2024. The Seed Fund, in partnership with Devmco Group, Devmco Realty, EST, Anthony Whatmore, Marine Walk, Rainmaker Marketing, and Shaves Paint and Décor, came together to revitalize and improve the outreach programme’s kitchen and vegetable garden, to make hundreds of sandwiches for the impoverished community, and spend valuable time with the children of the centre.
“Mandela Day is an ideal opportunity for people in a more fortunate position to come and see what we do in and with this incredible community that I have been working with for the past 15 years. Proximity changes your perspective, and our eyes are opened to the very real need of some disadvantaged communities when we are directly exposed to it. We love it when people visit us and interact with the children and the community as it gives you the human-to-human contact that is so valuable. It also helps us to shine a spotlight on the important work we are doing to try and motivate for this community to get basic essentials like electricity and running water,” says Arianne Hayes-Hill of The Seed Fund.
“For organisations such as ours, Mandela Day has a big impact on the community. Seeing people come from the outside to actively interact, engage, and serve has fostered better relationships and been incredibly positive. Our kitchen container, the hub of our food production, has been in need of a fresh, vibrant look. We are so grateful to Shaves Paint and Décor, who have sponsored R7000 worth of paint to make this possible,” Hayes-Hill adds.
A fresh coat of paint can significantly enhance the community’s environment, bringing joy and a sense of renewal. “We’re proud to have been part of this initiative and to see the smiles on the faces of the people of this settlement over the course of the day has been very rewarding. We have a duty to take care of our communities, and sponsorship of this kind makes a huge difference in bringing about a spirit of unity and hope, which speaks to our commitment to uplifting our communities,” says Nick Shaves, Managing Director of Shaves Paint and Décor.
Hayes-Hill continues to enthuse about the Mandela Day experience saying, “I am particularly excited about the vegetable gardens. The community, on their own initiative, prepared a plot to plant vegetables, which has grown significantly over the past few months. The money raised from these vegetables is used to buy more seedlings and food parcels for those struggling in the community. It has been an incredible initiative where the community helps themselves, and having the Devmco Group bring in the appointed landscaper and gardening expert, Zan Bowker from Indigi Tree who not only sponsor seedlings and gardening essentials but also provided community members with a practical workshop of how they can continue to grow and enhance their garden, has made a significant difference already. I loved the fact that beyond the donation of various different types of vegetables and herbs and the volunteers being out in full force to work on the gardens today, that there was also an informal workshop carried out to ensure knowledge and a skills transfer took place to the people living here that will last beyond the crops planted now”.
Devmco Group, with a strong background in the property industry, has been at the forefront of establishing communities within the Sibaya precinct and so, to have partnered with a worthy cause like this brings an additional layer to the fostering of healthy and happy communities that the business sets out to achieve with every development it undertakes. “It’s a privilege to be making a difference in this particular community, and we look forward to seeing the positive impact these efforts have for years to come,” says Delyse Bartlett from Devmco Group who spearheaded the Mandela Day initiative with Innova Haus.
“Apart from what was carried out on Mandela Day, we have several ongoing initiatives that we run at The Seed Fund. We have a child sponsorship programme which enables every child to attend school with dignity and get there safely. We also have an education fund where we send selected children to better schools in the area, giving them an opportunity to be exposed to art, culture, and a variety of sports. We encourage everyone to get involved not just on Mandela Day, but throughout the year. Your support and participation can make a significant impact and help us continue to uplift and empower our communities in need,” Hayes-Hill appeals.
