Woolworths cheers Alex women
ALEXANDRA – Woolworths puts a small dent in poverty.
Female employees of Woolworths Retail Store extended sisterly warmth during Women’s Month to some of the needy elderly women of Alexandra.
They donated 15 blankets to them at NPO, Blessed is the Hand That Gives on 10th Avenue. Belated as it may seem with winter waning, the donation was timely to help ward off poverty which has no time, season or mercy.
The act was most touching when they went to the home of bedridden, 86-year-old Dorah Phiri whose sight and hearing are failing due to diabetes.
Thandi Makoni said the donation was part of the company’s corporate social investment work and was delayed due to other charitable obligations they had to fulfil first. “It’s our outreach act of love to needy elderly citizens to make a difference in their lives and add to their limited assets,” she said.
Nkosinathi Ntombela of the NPO said the donation was the beginning of a partnership and long journey with the company and others to address the debilitating effects of poverty on many of the township residents. “They will be able to wash the only blankets they used daily in winter while still remaining warm and healthy through the new ones,” Ntombela said.
He decried the poverty which has made many in Alex beggars and added that it should not all be blamed on the past. “Some of it currently, is self-induced by residents’ desire for a quick-fix solution and income through menial jobs at the expense of getting a higher education and skills training for better paying, secure and professional jobs and their own small enterprises.
“Illiteracy makes us unemployable and only fit for cheap labour and insecure jobs. Residents will end their intergenerational cycle of poverty through higher education and comprehensive skills.”
Ntombela urged the department of education to coordinate with the private sector when structuring the curriculum to ensure the country’s economic needs are integrated to reduce dependency on other countries for qualified, skilled and experienced workers. “Education also helps to establish small businesses and create employment to end the dependency syndrome.”
Details: Blessed Is The Hand That Gives 063 005 1940.
