While business hardship during the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown has been well documented, NGOs and charities have been similarly affected given that their fund-raising efforts were largely put on hold.
For the Reach for a Dream Foundation, the challenge was compounded by the fact that the organisation was unable to make dreams come true during the lockdown in the same way that it had done previously.
“Reach for a Dream’s largest fund-raiser, Slipper Day, did not happen in 2020 as a result of the pandemic,” said the foundation’s marketing manager, Roxanne Manuel.
“We, therefore, tried our very best to raise funds virtually through online events and auctions. At the same time, we could no longer go to hospitals to fulfil the dreams of children facing life-threatening illnesses. “That meant we had to find new ways of engaging with dreamers.”
Like many organisations around the world, Reach for a Dream turned to digital technology as a solution and by the end of 2020 had introduced virtual reality experiences.
“We are now looking for donors and content creators to sponsor the foundation to make more virtual reality kits available to more hospitals,” said Manuel. “To date, seven kits have been sold. Of these, one is at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital and the rest are currently being rolled out.”
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The virtual reality kits aim to give dreamers virtual reality experiences to inspire their imaginations and provide them with some joy as they battle their illnesses. She said the foundation’s ability to continue to inspire dreamers has become even more important during the pandemic given that many of these children feel even more isolated from society than they would normally.
“The children suffering from a life-threatening medical condition and their families are both placed under enormous psychological, financial and emotional stress. “We try to alleviate that stress in a small way by realising one of the children’s dreams which, in the past, could have included meeting somebody famous, having an experience such as a helicopter trip, seeing the sea, or having a bedroom makeover. “Essentially, it’s about inspiring hope and giving them a reason to keep fighting,” explained Manuel.
During the pandemic in 2020, Infection Protection Products, the manufacturers of the Sanitouch range of products, which include medical-grade sanitiser and a range of sanitiser wipes, donated 250 specially branded boxes.
These boxes contained a sanitising spray, a sanitising wipes container, a packet of wipes and a special cleaning wipe, which were distributed to dreamers in Gauteng with life-threatening illnesses.
“These packs provided much-needed sanitising products to families who could not afford quality sanitiser products,” said Manuel, adding that the products allowed dreamers to sanitise and keep safe long after the dream. It also shows dreamers that they were not forgotten amidst the pandemic.
Reach for a Dream Foundation
Reach for a Dream believes in the power of dreams and encourages children to use their dreams to fight life-threatening illnesses and try as far as possible to make these dreams come true.
Its vision is to grow the foundation and give hope to children fighting life-threatening illnesses through the fulfilment of their dreams.
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