Every year around Christmas time community members gather to celebrate Christmas festivities by distributing grocery parcels and cooking for children around the community. Through the Cino Shearer Foundation this initiative has been taking place for 12 years and celebrating their 12 year anniversary the foundation hopes to bring families together and give children a home made Xmas experience.
The Christmas hamper initiative took place in the community of Westbury, Gauteng. A community that has been on the news over the years and throughout 2023 for substance abuse, gang related killings and violence. The aim of this initiative is to reach out to the aged and those whom are most vulnerable in the community through the Cino Shearer foundation which focuses on women, the elderly and children.
The festivities continue in Alex, Tembisa, Pefferville, Mdantsane, Zwide, Cofimvaba, Gugulethu, Orange Farm, Kwanongoma, Lebowakgomo, Uitenhage and other parts of the country to celebrate Christmas with families through food parcels donations, school shoes donation for the young ones and a feast where members of the community cook and eat with the elderly and young children to keep the spirit of Christmas alive.
The aim of this initiative is to encourage more South African to celebrate Christmas and the festive season by breaking bread with the community. If you able to cook and feast a group of people in your community who don’t have access to meals or basic essentials like food and clothes, to share what you have with your community and help those who are vulnerable and under privileged to enjoy a feast and celebrate Christmas with you.
The foundation spokesperson: Lacious Louw who is a school teacher and LGBTQ human rights activist in Westbury said the following: “At the Cino Shearer foundation we are committed to community development, and the elevation of poverty one initiative at a time, with the Guidance of our Patron Cino Shearer we aim to do 12 outreach programmes in South African Townships to celebrate the foundation’s 12th birthday and to create the spirit of Ubuntu amongst community members as we taught from a young age that it takes a village to groom a child and help young people reach their goals.
Another member of the foundation Phumeza Kwababa from Mdantsane township said “I always volunteer every year to cook for children and the elderly because I know Christmas is not the same for everyone. Through the foundation I’m able to give back to my community for grooming me and supporting me to become a caregiver as a profession where I now run my own disability programme for disabled people.
