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When President Cyril Ramaphosa  heeded a call  for all South African's to batten the hatches in order to flatten the curve five weeks ago, our immediate concern was for the welfare of our VUSA children.  Devastating scenes from around the world,  meant we had to protect our hospital workers but with many of the VUSA families already living below the breadline, we also knew we could not close our doors.  

Many of South Africa's children previously received meals in daily school feeding schemes and these were reduced to two days a week.  With many families on a 'no work, no pay' situation, having to feed an an additional mouth five days a week added to the strain.   VUSA coaches supported one of the primary schools with in distribution twice a week, and as residents of Langa, highlighted a major concern - some children had to walk long distances to receive a meal thus compromising their safety. We  thus were able to secure additional venues at two of our partner ECD centres for food distribution but the need was greater than we could supply and we then  appealed to our communities.

We were blown away by the generosity.  So many families were on reduced incomes, but soup, sandwiches, dry ingredients and monetary donations came rolling in.  Businesses who had to close their doors, reopened as soup kitchens (please see below), Bishops opened it's kitchens and offered VUSA the use of a vehicle to deliver the food in to Langa and day by day, more and more children were fed.

Whilst the more privileged communities have been able to accommodate their learners with online schooling, the majority of South African children fall further behind.  VUSA are also currently distributing activity worksheets (offering academic, physical and mental health exercises) to ensure children who have no online resources continue to be stimulated through the extended lock-down.  

We thank everyone for their unbelievable support and could not sign off without thanking our partners who support us year in and out, without whom, we would not have the resources in place to build on in this time of crisis. 

Whilst South Africa's future remains uncertain, the 'gees' of her population remains in tact.  Thank you to each and every person who has supported our Langa community in this scary, crazy, uncertain time.  

Take care and stay safe. 

Kind regards
Brendan, Mak & Nikki
SOME OF THE VUSA 'SOUPERHEROES
There are too many people to thank in this forum, however there are a few people who require special mention.

Steve and Shelley Estcourt - thank you for everything you do for VUSA. Thank you for the admin support, making soup when there was a short-fall, buttering sandwiches, collecting donations and thank you for your incredibly successful Back-a-Buddy campaign.

Steve Bailey - thank you to you and your family for making soup and biscuits and for making yourself available to collect donations.  No request is ever to big and nothing is ever too much trouble - please know how much we value everything you do. 

Belinda Gordon - thank you for your incredible support and also for  running a half marathon around your garden to raise funds for VUSA.  Thank you for being such an wonderful VUSA Ambassador.

There are so many other incredible families who have made multiple buckets of soup, donated funds, raised awareness and raised funds - the list goes on.   We thank you from the bottom of our hearts.  
Andre Viljoen of the Woodstock Brewery is one of VUSA's 'Lockdown Legends'.  Although a catastrophic time for his business, Andre thought beyond the impact of his business and within a few short days had turned his brewery into a Soupabrewery donating thousands of soup for distribution to the poorest communities each day.  Thank you, Andre for your support.  
MIKE FORD CHALLENGE
Bishops Head Boy, Michael Ford, showed true leadership by issuing an exercise challenge to his peers in order to raise funds for VUSA's Covid -19 relief efforts.  He has sourced five signed Stormers jersey's as prizes. To be eligible to win a jersey, just sign up and send your video. Mike's challenge has thus far raised R6500.  To see the challenge, click below (Disclaimer: it's exhausting just watching it).  Thank you for your support Mike. 
tlc - MOTHERS DAY GIFT CARD
TLC flooring, blinds and outdoor, is currently running a Mother's Day special.  Purchase a voucher and a percentage of proceeds will be donated to the VUSA Rugby and Learning Academy.  Please take a look at their beautiful range of rugs.  By purchasing a voucher, you are supporting VUSA, small business and giving your mum a special Mother's Day Gift. 

Large : 180cm x 270cm R1150.00 (Usually R1400)
Small 120cm x 180cm R560 (Usually R750)

Please click the button below to see more information. 
tlc website
COLLABORATION FOR EDUCATION
 
Collaboration is a great way to roll out holistic programmes and we are incredibly grateful to the Sisanda Fundaytion for providing worksheets for our children.  These worksheets provide  fun activities for children to do on their own or interactively with their families.  Sisanda outsourced to their partners in order to produce a worksheet which also includes physical and mental well-being exercises that the children can do at home, during lockdown.  Sisanda has also provided VUSA with financial assistance towards the feeding programme.  Thank you, Nicky and your team at Sisanda Fundaytion. We cannot wait for this to be over so that we can take our children on one of your famous Sisanda Fun Days!

For more information on the Sisanda Fundaytion, please visit their website :  http://www.sisanda.org.za/
We are incredibly grateful to the Bishops staff who have sourced academic worksheets for our VUSA children through this extended lockdown.  We are in a privileged position to have access to some of the best educational resources in the country (if not the world) and sharing these  activities will keep young minds occupied and engaged through lockdown.

We are also incredibly grateful to Bishops for opening it's kitchens and providing transport and staff to tackle the crisis as effectively as possible. 
TOGETHER FOR GREATER IMPACT
CALL TO ACTION
Thanks to all the generous donations and our partnership with Woodstock Brewery we are no longer collecting soup.  If you are looking for a way to support a feeding initiative we are hoping to supplement meals with sandwiches (butter /peanut butter/ jam as well a dry products like pasta, rice, samp, beans.  We are also distributing boiled eggs and biscuits.  If you wish to volunteer, we welcome assistance with buttering sandwiches and collating educational worksheets.  Woodstock Brewery is also in need of volunteers to chop veggies for soup. Please contact Brendan (bfogarty@bishops.org.za) or Nikki (nmatthews@bishops.org.za) should you be available to assist. 
MAKING IT HAPPEN
Finally, we have to acknowledge this phenomenal team.  VUSA  employed men and women from the community who, above all else, would be positive role-models to the children.  In this time of fear and uncertainty they have been there each day to ensure the children are fed safely.  They have  also encouraged, motivated and most definitely inspired.

As with most businesses, we have had to reduce staff salaries significantly.  Despite this, our incredible team have adapted from their core role and assist wherever they are needed with a willing smile.  Should you wish to make any contributions for staff data or to support our coaches during this appeal, please reference your contribution with your name/STAFF or your name/DATA.
VUSA Coaches teaching Covid-19 Health and Safety.  
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