Children sit as they wait for the daily food distribution in the Tembisa informal settlement, Johannesburg, on April 24, 2020. Despite the promise by South African Social Development minister Lindiwe Zulu to increase food aid deliveries, the role played by the private charity sector remain crucial. (Photo by Luca Sola / AFP)
In a statement they said that they had again teamed up with GivenGain as their official South African online fundraising platform to enable fundraisers and donors to help out – wherever they are, and without leaving their homes.
According to Marius Maré, President of GivenGain, #GivingTuesdayNow could be the country’s biggest ever day of online fundraising.
“South Africa has among the highest numbers of Covid-19 cases on the continent and charities here are really struggling, but we’ve already seen an amazing response,” Maré says. “Fundraisers and charities on our platform have already stepped up in a big way to keep spreading kindness, even as we’ve seen big fundraising events being closed during lockdown. We’ll be doing all we can to help them continue to do so on 5 May and beyond. Their generosity has the power to unite and heal communities in good times and bad, and right now that’s exactly what we all need.”
Asha Curran, CEO of Giving Tuesday, said: “#GivingTuesdayNow is a chance for us to stand united and use grassroots generosity to show that we are all in this together. We all have something to give, and every act of human consideration and kindness matters.”
To help charities, fundraisers and corporate teams prepare for the event, GivenGain has spent the past few weeks preparing its fundraisers, donors and charities on their platform for #GivingTuesdayNow – sharing fundraising advice starter packs for charities, fundraisers and corporations, tips for earning donations through social media, and charity event ideas that supporters can hold without leaving home.
In the run-up to #GivingTuesdayNow, GivenGain launched its own Covid-19: Let the kindness continue! initiative, calling on fundraisers and donors to support their favourite charities. So far, it has raised almost R4 million for charities in South Africa – and as most fundraising events have been cancelled or postponed, fundraisers have had to get creative to raise money.
The organisation said that after the Two Oceans Marathon in Cape Town was cancelled last month, local resident Amelia Lourens decided she was going to make a difference anyway. While she couldn’t follow the planned route of the marathon, she could still complete its 56km distance – by running more than 1,000 laps of her garden. While she originally hoped to raise R5,600 for the Herberg Children’s Home, her GivenGain project blew up beyond all expectations after she shared it on social media. Thanks to donors from across the country, Amelia was able to beat her target more than four times over!
Other GivenGain charities and fundraisers have chosen less strenuous ways to raise money. Last month, childhood cancer charity CHOC ran a superhero-themed baking competition for people to join in exchange for donations. The same charity has also been helped out by the Vodacom Bulls rugby team, who have been recording themselves reading children’s bedtime stories to raise money.
For GivenGain’s Maré, this wave of generosity is the perfect answer to COVID-19.
“GivenGain was founded on the belief that it is better to give than to receive,” he says. “#GivingTuesdayNow is a chance for South Africans to put that belief into action and know the rewards of making a difference.”
To start your own fundraising project on GivenGain, visit https://www.givengain.com/join. To create a GivenGain charity account, go to https://join.givengain.com/giving-tuesday-now/.
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