Donated toys bring joy to children
SUNNINGHILL – An abundance of new and used toys came in from a toy drive for children in thanks to generous members of the public.
A toy drive hosted at The Square Shopping Centre in Sunninghill on 14 August received overwhelming support from residents
The donations from the event were donated to Kidz Clinic. The organisation falls under the umbrella of Women and Men Against Child Abuse (WMACA), which is a non-profit child protection organisation that is committed to ending child abuse by fighting for their rights through a multifaceted, dynamic and aggressive offensive against any form of abuse and gender-based violence.
The drive was initiated by Paulshof resident Keith de Villiers who works in the Sunninghill area and is part of the National Realtors Group.
He thought of donating the toys to the clinic and was incredibly overwhelmed and ‘blown away’ by the support of those who donated, with items still coming in later that week.
“Things that were donated were not only second-hand items but also new items. People who were at The Square who walked past went and bought items like toys and clothes just so that they could donate,” he said.
De Villiers has contributed to the clinic by organising a jungle gym to be donated to the centre. He first began to help those in need when he donated a spare two-seater couch to Penny Stein, who is a part of WMACA, after enquiring about what the centre needed at the time.
“There was a lady in Sunninghill who was donating a jungle gym. We managed to get it but wanted to also take some toys with us to the kids when we went back. The building of the jungle gym has already been done, which is fantastic,” he said.
“What these kids have been through is traumatic enough, they’ve had their youth and innocence stolen from them.
“We would like to collect as much as possible to be able to distribute to both the Boksburg and Alexandra Kidz Clinics.”
He added, “A massive thank you needs to be given to those involved in the Community Action Network in Morningside and Sunninghill, the management staff at The Square for allowing us to have people donate toys.”
Johnny Huang, who is a director at Amitofo Developments which owns The Square Shopping Centre also showed his support for helping the Kidz Centre by opting to donate litres of paint for the centre.
De Villiers concluded, “It’s amazing to see people come together like this.”
