T he impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has reached all corners of the world. For the less fortunate, every bit of help goes a long way in these difficult times. One such example was the food drive organised in Capricorn, Cape Town: While South Africa is under a strict lock-down, we wanted to step up and support the children of the iThemba Schools and their families.
From the 27th to the 29th of May, more than 400 food parcels were handed out to the iThemba families. This great initiative was made possible through sponsorships from the organisations Riedel Kinderstiftung and SHE Informationstechnologie AG, and the support of Lufthansa cabin crew members. Especially heart-warming were the generous donations from our own colleagues: Martina Boro from Berlin sewed beautiful face masks to sell to colleagues who were all too happy to contribute to this great cause, and raised funds through a bake sale in our Berlin Centre. The care packages included not only food and toiletries, but also teaching materials for the young learners who are still unable to attend school.
The teachers contacted the families and allocated pick-up times, to prevent congestion. Parents lined up outside the gate, went through the sanitisation measures, and received a face mask if they didn’t have one. The kids were split into groups: Caterpillars or Bees. Parents then proceeded to their allocated table, and after a health screening and having their temperature taken, they received their care package.
“The families were incredibly grateful. A big thank you to all our sponsors who contributed to this worthy initiative, and to all volunteers for their excellent commitment. We couldn’t have done this without their support!” – Ian Ohlson, Chairperson of iThemba pre-primary school and Site Operations Manager Lufthansa InTouch Cape Town.
This is the second food drive we have organised for the families of iThemba since the beginning of the nation-wide lock-down in South Africa. If you want to support our young learners, please visit the iThemba website to donate: https://ithembaschool.co.za/donation.html. Your donation will make a difference to the lives of 85 children who need your support!
