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Donors and volunteers needed to bring joy to disadvantaged kids
South Africans’ charitable behaviours have steadily declined over the last few years, with only 62% of people saying they have helped a stranger – down from 72%. Volunteering has also fallen to 28% from 34%, while those who make donations have dropped to 16% from 28%. “The cost-of-living crisis has played an understandable and limiting role, but, when you realise the impact that donating and volunteering can have – not just on the beneficiaries, but also on the giver – you learn that giving is priceless,” says Deb Zelezniak, CEO at the Santa Shoebox Projects.
Speaking in light of the International Day of Charity, the aim of which is to mobilise people around the world to do charitable work, she encourages South Africans to make a difference in the life of even just one child. “This could be done by pledging a Santa Shoebox filled with essential items and treats for a kid in need to enjoy come Christmas.”
Andrea Venter, a former children’s home resident and one of the very first Santa Shoebox Project recipients, shares that for many children, this is the only gift that they receive all year. “I will never forget when I was given my first Santa Shoebox. I was 17 and the excitement was overwhelming. I still have the hairbrush that came in the box to this day and wish I had kept the note from the donor, as it was a letter of encouragement to not give up and it meant so much to me.”
She continues, “It felt like someone cared for me. This is why, when I became a donor some 10 years later and was putting together my shoebox, I put all the love that I could into that box. I just knew that it would be going to a kid who would have the biggest smile on their face, just like I did all those years ago. And it wasn’t because of the actual contents, but simply because somebody out there cared enough to send me a present even though they had never met me.”
For Yona Gxasheka, who was brought up by her grandmother, her gift meant that she got to be a kid again. “Growing up, I was very conscious of our financial constraints. For instance, there would be days when I wouldn’t eat because I gave my food to my sister or wouldn’t go to school because I didn’t have books. I was so excited to receive that present – most of all about the outfit that I was given to wear on Christmas Day.”
Venter’s advice for those considering becoming a Santa Shoebox Project donor is to remember that one can’t put a price on a child’s happiness. “While times have been tough financially for many South Africans this year, that box will mean the absolute world to the kid who receives it.”
Zelezniak points out that if it isn’t feasible to put a box together, there is the option of volunteering your time at one of the drop off points around the country. Gxasheka, who is today both a volunteer and donor, comments, “It will be the best decision you’ve ever made – just wait until you see the change in those kids when they get their presents!”
“This year, we’re again encouraging donors to include a duplicate item in their shoeboxes which the child can, in turn, bestow on an important person in their lives. In doing so, we give our beneficiary children the chance to experience the joy of giving for themselves– after all, isn’t that what the festive season is all about?” concludes Zelezniak.
Over the past 17 years, 1 152 587 children throughout South Africa and Namibia have been reached by the Project. Now, in its 18th year, the non-profit hopes to ‘Share the Love’ with 80 000 more.
To share the love or for more information, go to https://santashoebox.org.za.