Paying it forward at charity ball
Guests to this year's annual Sunflower Fund Charity Ball were encouraged to pay it forward by joining the SA Bone Marrow Registry.
THE 10th Annual Sunflower Fund’s Charity Ball in association with IBV International Vaults was once again a glitzy event, where people dressed to the nines and arrived at Durban’s Elangeni Hotel to show their support for the Fund.
The aim of this year’s ball was to motivate guests to ‘pay-it-forward’ and regional manager, Stephanie Berry said the fact that people were willing to become stem cell donors, shows an act of kindness where they are doing something without expecting something in return.
“Why do people become stem cell donors? It is to save the life of someone you have never met, and will likely never meet, realising even a small act of kindness like donating two vials of blood, will make a huge difference. People can also help by raising awareness of what The Sunflower Fund does by letting us do talks at their offices, by hosting donor drives and paying for their staff to be tissue typed, by holding fundraisers or helping at an event. We take our health for granted, but there’s nothing you can do to prevent the diagnosis of leukaemia. In giving we receive, and people need to become the change they want to see by paying it forward and making a difference. You could save a life,” she said.
Compere, Vukile McKenzie, said in the 16 years since The Sunflower Fund started, the registry has grown from 1 200 donors to 72 000.
Although this is a tremendous growth, Berry said ideally there needed to be 100 000 stem cell donors in each ethnic group.
“We still have a long way to go to get to our goal of 400 000, and as The Sunflower Fund we strive to educate the community. People like these here tonight are giving hope to people who are suffering from leukaemia,” said Berry.
CEO Alana James, said she was blown away by the different stories she had heard from people who attended the event.
“The stories of why people are here and why they support The Sunflower Fund are absolutely amazing. There’s not one person here tonight that doesn’t have passion for the cause,” she said,
Graeme Hawkins from Gold Circle hosted the auction at the event, which raised a further R139 000 for the Fund.
All funds raised will be used to give hope to patients diagnosed with leukaemia or a life threatening blood disorder who are in need of a stem cell transplant.
For more information on The Sunflower Fund or how to become a stem cell donor, visit www.sunflowerfund.org.za or call (toll free) 0800 12 10 82.
