Foundation tackles community solutions

Scrolling on social media, seeing endless appeals for help and entire communities feeling overwhelmed by the pressures of life, six like-minded individuals saw an opportunity to launch a foundation offering sustainable community solutions.

David Wright of Farrarmere and Pierre Marneweck of Atlasville are two founding members of the new The Humanity Foundation. They hope their initiative will make a tangible difference within the greater Benoni and Boksburg communities.

“Caring and making a difference in the lives of those who might be fighting silent battles is within us all,” said Marneweck.

“We just need to get up and start making a difference instead of waiting for someone else to get the ball rolling.”
Describing the foundation’s mission, Marneweck explains that the non-profit company (NPC) that is awaiting its NPO certification is not a charity organisation specialising in a particular service.

“As a foundation, we align ourselves as a ‘middleman’ service organisation which works to identify individual needs and help connect persons or families with specialised organisations,” he said.

“Our goal is not to see how many people we can assist on a once-off basis per year. Rather, it is to ensure that anyone we commit to being of service to is helped throughout the entire cycle of need.

“We want to journey with our beneficiaries to make a lasting difference in their lives. Once they can face the world head-on, they may feel better equipped to pay it forward.”

Partnering with local charity organisations that specialise in GBV and substance abuse, the Chaplain on Board Initiative and other community involvement projects, The Humanity Foundation aims to create a specialist network of NPOs.

“We will endeavour to adopt sustainable projects which will not only see our foundation undertake once-off projects but continuous all-year-round involvement,” said Wright.

“If we all stand together in service, we can move mountains.”

Having formally launched the foundation, the founding members call on the community to become friends of Humanity.

“Affiliation with the foundation is not bound to a membership. Life is busy and not everyone has the time or resources to commit to monthly meetings,” said Marneweck.

“However, we all have different drives or passions, and those are the ‘friends’ we want to become involved with the foundation.

“We call on members of the community to commit to donating their time as and when they can assist with projects that speak to their soul’s purpose. People who have the sense of being of service.”

Wright and Marneweck challenged local businesses to get involved and open their hearts and doors to the communities that form the heartbeat of their business.

“The Boksburg gas tanker explosion was a huge learning curve for us. Despite the heartache, it proved how community and humanity can stand together to help those in need,” said Marneweck.

“If we could show true ubuntu in the moments that followed that blast, why can we not carry that spirit through in every aspect of humanity?”

For more information about The Humanity Foundation, see their Facebook page.

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