Honouring our local heroes
Lowvelders are wonderful people and always willing to help where there is need. But a special brand of heroes were born on the day that President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the whole country would go into lockdown to fight Covid-19.
As businesses closed their doors and people lost their livelihood, these men and women rose to the occasion and started helping those who could no longer help themselves.
Lowvelder used social media to ask the community to nominate their heroes. Hundreds of people responded and we cannot write about everybody. There were simply too many.
But here are a few of those heroes:
Albert Gryvenstein, bedryfsbestuurder van Bossies Community Justice
Bossie’s Community Justice se werksaamhede gaan onverpoos voort tydens die grendelstaat.
“Ons hulplyn word steeds 24 uur per dag, sewe dae per week beman. Om in hierdie onsekere tye noodoproepe te ontvang en hanteer, herinner my daaraan dat hierdie diens my roeping is,” sê Gryvenstein.
“Dit voel goed om te weet dat inwoners steeds op BCJ kan staat maak. Selfs wanneer die res van hul lewens in onsekerheid gehul is, is hulle veiligheid vir ons ‘n prioriteit.
Met die heersende ekonomiese onsekerheid is dit ‘n seëning om ons diens gratis te kan aanbied. Ons hoop en bid vir skenkings om ons aan die gang te hou, want ons dienste kos wel geld.
Intussen gaan ons langtermynondersoeke agter die skerms voort – ons werk stop nie by arrestasies nie. Ons speel ‘n groot rol in die ondersoek na en vervolging van misdade,” sê hy.
TJ en Brenda Mare, Mpumalanga Leadership Foundation
“Ons dien al ons gemeenskap van Desember 2004 af, maar die grendelstaat het alles verander,” sê TJ.
“Die oggend van 27 Maart het ons vir mekaar gesê God sal voorsien. En Hy het.”
TJ sê na 40 dae van inperking is hy dankbaar vir God wat voorsien het en die gemeenskap se betrokkenheid.
“Ons het vinnig geleer om die spreekwoord ‘it takes a village to raise a child’ bietjie aan te pas.
Dit vat werklik ‘n hele gemeenskap om ‘n gemeenskap te maak werk. Ons helde is elke lid van ons gemeenskap wat onbaatsugtig saam dienslewer, elkeen se gee, elkeen se liefde, en natuurlik vertroue in ons om die regte dinge reg te doen.”
Die sentrum verskaf nie net kos nie. “Ons lewer mediese en sielkundige dienste, sowel as emosionele ondersteuning,” sê TJ.
Die Mpumalanga Leadership Foundation se bankbalans op 27 Maart was minder as R1 000 en tot vandag het ons 8 256 etes, 716 kospakkies en hulp aan ander organisasies (CMR, Betty’s Haven, Katoen, Freemar, Ons gee om projek en Dignity Foundation). God het voorsien,” sê TJ.
André Hattingh, Pediatric Care Africa
“As a pediatric medical NGO, we historically only looked after and assisted children requiring surgeries, medical treatment, medicines and 350 children in our community requiring additional food, until Covid19 appeared on the horizon.
“Our Pediatric Care Africa constitution dictates that in the event of a major pandemic or disaster, we automatically help adults as well and not just children anymore.
“Since the March 26 we have distributed 16,8 tonnes of food to hungry persons in every corner of Mpumalanga. That is the equivalent of 48 000 meals of 350g each and it seems to be drop in the ocean, as every month the demand for food and phone calls from desperate members of our community increase by 1 200%.
“One elderly gentleman told me that he dreams of food even when he is awake, as he has lost his job! I can’t imagine that, as I have never starved…
“We couldn’t achieve any of this without the generosity of private and corporate donors and a handful of overworked volunteers and board members.
Our donors will most probably never meet the elderly stroke patient whose children can no longer help her with a little money or the mother who has absolutely no food in the house to hear them say thank you, but I do hear and see them every day and on behalf of them, I want to say thank you very, very much to each and every donor who helped them receive a meal. You are our community heroes!” Hattingh says.
Thea Rix and Toy Bester, Ons gee om, Nelspruit
“The true art of giving is to give from the heart without any expectation of a return. True giving comes from the same place inside you as your deepest happiness. They are inexplicably intertwined. A gift is something that is enjoyed twice: first by the giver who revels in the pleasure of giving something special and then also by the receiver who receives with gratitude.
“Giving back to the community has always been part of who I am. I love what I do and if I had the ability to do more, I would. It is a calling and the most stressful, fulfilling mission the Lord has bestowed upon us,” Rix said.
“Die dankbaarheid op gesigte as daar weer kos in die huis is en die dankbaarheid vir iets soos toiletpapier is ongelooflik. Ek het nooit gedink iemand sal die Here dank vir toiletpapier nie,” sê Bester.
Jannie en Santie Roux, NG Gemeente, Witrivier
“Diensbaarheid en omgee was nog altyd deel van my lewe, en dit het die afgelope 15 jaar nuwe dimensie gekry. Ek het betrokke geraak by die Kos- en Klerekas van NG Gemeente Witrivier. Daar is vir my niks lekkerder om iemand wat met hangskouers by ons aankom wegstap met nuwe hoop vir die lewe nie.
“Gedurende die grendeltyd is ek deel van die gemeente se span wat help nood verlig. Ek en my man, Jannie, ry gereeld om voorraad te gaan aankoop vir die pakke wat gepak word. Ons help ook pak en koördineer die navrae.
“Maar die lekkerste lekker is wanneer skenkers kom om produkte of skenkings af te laai. Mense se harte wat oorloop en gee sonder perke gee my tonne energie en laat my aanhou doen wat ek doen. Elke keer weet ek dat God elke persoon met ‘n doel en droom op aarde geplaas word. Daar is altyd hoop!” sê Santie.
Alicia Whitting en Harm du Plessis, Covid Flight Mpumalanga
“As ek dink aan ‘n sogenaamde held, dink ek aan mense soos ons dokters, ons boere en ons sekuriteitsmanne en -vroue.
Ek dink aan kinders wat hulle ouers onderhou, of ouers wat kinders moet groot maak. Ek dink aan my mede-arbeiders wat kospakkies aflewer, of predikante wat hulle gemeentelede emosioneel en geestelik ondersteun.
Al wat ek, my Harm, en ‘n paar vriende in hierdie inperkingstyd gedoen het, is om namens The Covid Flight kosvoorrade en soveel as moontlik vrugte wat deur goue harte aan ons toevertrou is, te versprei na die grootste behoefte. Dankie vir elkeen wat ons ondersteun het tot hier! “Ons is nie helde nie, ons is net Nelspruiters (en ek is ‘n Gansbaaier ook),” sê Whitting.
