In an act to help community members of Thaba Patchoa and Heidedal who have been overlooked, community activist, Gregory Werner, together with the help of other stakeholders, started the Central Food Bank. According to Werner, they saw a great need in the two communities as most locals are being overlooked.
Complaints around food aid in Heidedal via the Facebook group “Heidedal Enough is Enough” gave rise to the idea of centralising assistance to the community. The executive team of the Heidedal Central Food Bank consists of Donald Constable (chair), Wilma Gatri (cooperate liaison), Eldene Davids (secretary), James Jordan (treasurer) and G. Minnie (spiritual consultant).
“We saw pictures in the media of the mayor handing out food parcels and sanitisers all over the Mangaung area but we haven’t seen the mayor do it in Heidedal. So there is a real need and it seems like the people of Heidedal are being overlooked, which is the same for Thaba Patchoa. We understand that the mayor cannot be everywhere but it seems like Heidedal is not being recognised in the hand-out attempts while the hunger is real and the situation dire with so many people asking for food,” said Werner.
According to him, the role of the food bank is to operate from a central list where the directive of the communities will go out and collect the names and details of all the people who are in need. “We are all together in this boat, community work is very important, we cannot fold our arms and unless we look after each other this whole boat will sink,” said Werner.
Chair of the organisation, Donald Constable, told Bloemfontein Courant that poverty has no affiliation and no one should be deprived of food parcels. “The food bank will be driven as a community-based organisation. We are working close with our police in command, Station Commander Colonel Itumeleng Pule from Heidedal Police Station, who has been a great help to us,” said Constable.
According to him, the food bank is a long-term initiative that will ensure self-sustainability in Heidedal and at a later stage, surrounding areas. “Though Heidedal is not the only area that has been affected by this pandemic, charity begins at home.”
Werner continued, “We can put systems in place to medicate the effects of this virus when it hits hard and I still believe that the worst is yet still to come, so we just need to take hands in solidarity and see how we can help each other. If we can work together it will fill the cracks and we can spread the resources equally and fairly among the needy in our community. It would go a long way, which would result in people remaining in lockdown, honouring the lockdown regulations and staying at home.”
Donations to the food bank can be made to Donald Constable. Contact him on 082 488 0573 or send an email to: [email protected].
Pierce van Heerden
