Sandton City donates R700 000 to Rays of Hope
Community non-profit works to uplift people in Alexandra
Following its recent successful Park. Pay. We Will Pay It Forward campaign, Sandton City has donated R700 000 of parking income to the Rays of Hope non-profit organisation that manages various social outreach programmes in Alexandra Township (Alex) in northern Johannesburg. This organisation aims to enable individuals and families to improve all aspects of their lives, thereby creating a lasting impact on the broader Alex residential community.
Rays of Hope started operating with one project in 1991 and has grown to a network of nine community-based programmes, focusing on education, vulnerable children, and work readiness. The funds from this donation specifically will be allocated to the Early Childhood Development Centre in Swetla, the poorest area of Alex. The organisation took over this creche at the start of 2020 and has been working hard to put good structures and a nutritious menu in place as well as upskilling the teachers.
Sandton City’s donation will contribute towards 65 young children receiving good formative early childhood education. Children that attend the centre receive nutritional meals, have a spacious play area and access to educational toys, puzzles and books, additional to the development from the teachers and their assistants. The donation will also enable the centre to procure much needed new mattresses for the children to use during their afternoon naps and enable some of the teachers to attend additional training.
This donation follows a longstanding relationship that Sandton City has had with Rays of Hope. The shopping centre has supported this organisation in many ways over the past few years, in an attempt to bridge the gap between the disparities that exist between the Sandton and Alex areas. Additionally, many of the staff that work in stores at Sandton City come from the Alex area, which the centre attributes as another reason to support the upliftment work being done in the area.
“Rays of Hope are so grateful for the partnership that we have with Sandton City, which started a few years ago. This most recent donation is incredible and will go so far towards providing quality education to the little people who attend our Early Childhood Development centre in Swetla,” says Sihle Mooi, CEO, Rays of Hope. “We are also excited about the young people from Alex who are given part-time employment opportunities at Sandton City.”
“Early childhood development is a fundamental part of enabling a child to succeed to their full potential in life,” says Preston Gaddy, General Manager of Sandton City. “I must commend Rays of Hope for the formidable work that they are doing and am thrilled that Sandton City can contribute to this much needed project.”
For more information or details about Sandton City, please contact Lana Maree-Arendse [email protected] or visit www.sandtoncity.com.
