Foundation supports families impacted by fire in Marathon
25 homes were lost due to a fire outbreak in the Informal Settlement of Marathon, in Primrose.
After a fire ravaged the Marathon informal settlement in Primrose on June 15, the Tzu Chi Foundation in Bedfordview heeded the call from the community.
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The fire destroyed 25 homes but no casualties were reported.
Community leaders assessed the situation and relayed this message to the foundation since the foundation also donates essential items to the settlement during the winter months.
A team of four volunteers from the foundation head office and five volunteers from the community on June 17 handed out blankets, bags of rice and food parcels to each affected family.
Tzu Chi receives rice from their global office in Taiwan for distribution to people in need in South Africa.
The foundation also supports community projects to stimulate economic activity.
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One of their programs is to have blankets sewn from recycled winter jacket material rather than importing blankets from Taiwan.
Protea Coin Security Group donates the jacket material, which supports Tzu Chi’s work.
“We are grateful for companies like Protea Coin for their support that makes it possible for us to bring relief to people in our communities with a simple essential item as a blanket,” said Eric Huang, a senior project manager at Tzu Chi.
At the distribution, they educated the team on the risk of fires in informal settlements.
They also learnt how the community rallied around the affected families to support them.
ALSO READ: Shack fire leaves Marathon residents homeless
Such a resident was Dudu Hlophe, who housed a few families in her place.
“We applaud heroines like Dudu, who demonstrate how leaders show up in times of need. She lives the ethos of Tzu Chi of giving even if you only have a little,” shared Vis Naidoo, a Bedfordview resident and volunteer with the foundation.
To learn more about the foundation, join their volunteer day event on the third Saturday of each month.
They will hold the next volunteer day on July 15.
Participants are required to reserve a space by contacting Linda at 079 881 7412 or by e-mail: admin@tzuchi.org.za
