By BARBARA HOLLANDS
A global initiative to fill empty stomachs called Stop Hunger Now, launched in America 18 years ago, has arrived in East London in time for Mandela Day, with Hemingways Mall as its base.
The mall has set a target to pack 250000 nutritious meals on Sunday July 17 and is calling on volunteers to donate 67 minutes of their time to pack food parcels in what is to be a marathon eight-hour packing session.
Should the target be reached, it will provide 967 local children with five meals a week for a year.
The Daily Dispatch is a media partner to the campaign and will be sending a team to man a production line on the day. “Every time we report on people who are in need, we are inspired by the caring response from our community,” said Daily Dispatch marketing manager Ryan Megaw.
He called on businesses to fund a “food line” at R10000, which will then be packed by volunteers or by the employee teams of participating sponsors.
“We challenge all businesses that do business with us to fund a line at the event. If you contribute now, you can make a huge impact.”
Hemingways Mall marketing manager Estee Roos said all meals packed would be served to needy families and charities within the Buffalo City Metro. “This is particularly important for us as we feel strong responsibility to support and serve the vulnerable members of our community.”
She said the mall would host four 67-minute sessions between 10am and 6pm next Sunday, with each of the 15 production lines manned by 20 volunteers per time slot.
This means at least 1200 pairs of hands will be needed on the day.
“It’s a massive logistical challenge and we encourage the East London public to take just an hour out of their Sunday to help,” Roos said.
So far 120 high schools had been invited to send helpers. The Hemingways Mall event is one of three Stop Hunger Now events being held in the Eastern Cape and Garden Route. Meals will also be packed in 25 venues across the globe to meet an international target of 10-million meals between July 13 and 20.
lIf you wish to respond directly to this challenge by contributing R10000 towards sponsoring a production line, please e-mail stophungernow@dispatch.co.za with your challenge to other businesses, and we will feature it in the Dispatch. — barbarah@dispatch.co.za
A chance to help curb hunger
A global initiative to fill empty stomachs called Stop Hunger Now, launched in America 18 years ago, has arrived in East London in time for Mandela Day, with Hemingways Mall as its base.
The mall has set a target to pack 250000 nutritious meals on Sunday July 17 and is calling on volunteers to donate 67 minutes of their time to pack food parcels in what is to be a marathon eight-hour packing session.
Should the target be reached, it will provide 967 local children with five meals a week for a year.
The Daily Dispatch is a media partner to the campaign and will be sending a team to man a production line on the day. “Every time we report on people who are in need, we are inspired by the caring response from our community,” said Daily Dispatch marketing manager Ryan Megaw.
He called on businesses to fund a “food line” at R10000, which will then be packed by volunteers or by the employee teams of participating sponsors.
“We challenge all businesses that do business with us to fund a line at the event. If you contribute now, you can make a huge impact.”
Hemingways Mall marketing manager Estee Roos said all meals packed would be served to needy families and charities within the Buffalo City Metro. “This is particularly important for us as we feel strong responsibility to support and serve the vulnerable members of our community.”
She said the mall would host four 67-minute sessions between 10am and 6pm next Sunday, with each of the 15 production lines manned by 20 volunteers per time slot.
This means at least 1200 pairs of hands will be needed on the day.
“It’s a massive logistical challenge and we encourage the East London public to take just an hour out of their Sunday to help,” Roos said.
So far 120 high schools had been invited to send helpers. The Hemingways Mall event is one of three Stop Hunger Now events being held in the Eastern Cape and Garden Route. Meals will also be packed in 25 venues across the globe to meet an international target of 10-million meals between July 13 and 20.
lIf you wish to respond directly to this challenge by contributing R10000 towards sponsoring a production line, please e-mail stophungernow@dispatch.co.za with your challenge to other businesses, and we will feature it in the Dispatch. — barbarah@dispatch.co.za
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