The Most Southerly
Rotary Club in Africa
1st November - Launch of the 2016 Bags of Love Appeal
… Christmas Cheer for the Needy …
Today is the 1st November, 2016 which means that in Stanford, South Africa, it is time to launch the 2016 Bags of Love Campaign. We appeal for assistance in feeding the desperately under-privileged community of our Village. These are the very poor and needy folk, who won’t have even a basic meal to look forward to on Christmas Day. They are the poorest of the poor - children, the sick and the elderly – who would normally rely on the 5 soup kitchens in Stanford for basic nutrition.
What makes the Bags of Love so vital at this time of the year? The volunteers who operate the soup kitchens take a two-week break over Christmas and New Year which simple means there is no food available to the people who normally make use of them. The aim of the campaign is not only to feed the needy at this critical time but also to bring a small measure of cheer into their otherwise dismal lives.
The Rotary Club of Stanford will once again drive the Bags of Love campaign and coordinator Lana Coates will ensure that bags are distributed to those families who are in genuine need in Stanford.
Through the generosity of many caring people, not only in South Africa but abroad as well, we were able to distribute around 230 Bags of Love in 2015.
The cost to fill a bag is US$ 11.00.(GBP 9.00) Should you wish to contribute to this vital cause, you can make a donation into the Rotary Club of Stanford’s bank account, via PayPal, and we will fill the bags on your behalf.
Simply go onto our website – http://www.rotaryclub.org.za – click on the “Donate” button, this will take you directly to our PayPal account. Details are already filled in, so all you have to do is put in the amount you’re donating and your personal details. Please be sure to reference that your donation is for Bags of Love in order for it to be allocated correctly. Once that’s done, email me with your contact details so we can follow up from our side.
Your kindness and generosity will be greatly appreciated, and go a long way in helping a poor family enjoy their Christmas. There is no greater gift than seeing a smile of gratitude on the face of a desperately poor child or elderly person, and we get plenty of those.
Feel free to pass this appeal on to others in your circle of associates, family and friends.
Yours most sincerely
Lana Coates
Project Leader – Bags of Love
A load of filled bags at distribution and some of the recipients from 2015
