A school bag donation drive, called “I’ve got your bag!” aims to get school bags to less privileged children in South Africa.
The initiative, driven by Hands of Love, is asking parents to donate their kids’ old school bags at drop- off points in Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban.
Hands of Love was recently founded by Catherine Versfeld.
The former Plumstead resident, who now lives in Johannesburg, says she always had a heart for people and wanting to help where she can.
“In 2019, my friend Tanya (who is a hand therapist, hence the inspiration for the name, and more) got me to go with her to volunteer on Mandela Day at an organisation in Johannesburg that feeds homeless people. We ended up loving it so much and ended up going regularly. I am still involved with that.”
But, she says, after a tough 2021, she felt she needed to do more.
“I didn’t want to wait for others to do things before I stepped up. So I started Hands of Love as a vehicle to do this, and a tribute to the inspiration and push that I got,” she adds.
The organisation, which was founded in November last year, is currently in the process of applying for non-profit organisation status.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I think it would grow so fast. We are in the process of registering. Unfortunately, everyone has only started coming back to work now. So things are being processed,” she says.
The “I’ve got your bag!” is the very first campaign being driven under Hands of Love’s banner.
According to Versfeld, the majority of kids in under-resourced communities are walking kilometers everyday just to get to school.
“They don’t have bags to carry their books in and are using plastic bags.”
She says she first became aware of these children’s plight while having dinner with a friend, and sharing my vision for Hands of Love with her.
“She had worked with kids in under-resourced areas. She mentioned that she worked with kids who were having to do this. I immediately felt so emotional and knew that I needed to do something about it!
“If you have kids, or know kids that have school bags they are no longer using or don’t need anymore, we need them,” she says.
The Hands of Love team currently consists of six members, three in Johannesburg (including Versfeld), and three in Cape Town. The members in Cape Town include Angelo Adams, a teacher at Curro;
Zaakirah Rossier-Philander, who is handling the organisation’s PR; and Jonathan Degueldre, who is a film producer.
“We have teamed up with Digicape who have just been so incredible,” adds Versfeld.
There are five drop-off points for previously loved bags in Cape Town.
- Voice of the Cape. 2 Queens Park Avenue, Salt River, Cape Town.
- Digicape. Roeland Square, Roeland Street, Gardens, Cape Town.
- Digicape. 2nd Floor Red Panda Place,Golf Park, Raapenberg Rd, Pinelands.
- Curro Century City High School. 2 Socrates Way, Century City.
- HTS Bellville Technical High School. Corner of College and Strand roads, Labiance, Bellville.
Bags can be dropped off until 31 January. Ensure that bags are cleaned before dropping them off.
- For more information, visit www.handsoflove.org.za
