DURBAN North residents have paved the way to feed needy families in the Dolphin Coast by donating some 6000 containers to equip soup kitchens and churches to send their soup out to the community.
The brains behind the operation are Maddy Loynes from Durban North and Megan Viljoen who lives in Sheffield Beach. Viljoen is part of Dolphin Coast Outreach. The parternship has worked so smoothly, the pair could barely ‘contain’ their excitement as they chatted to the Northglen News last week. They are still collecting containers and clothes to distribute to those in need
“In level 5 lockdown there was a call to assist in feeding marginalised families in the Balito and Salt Rock area. It became a community project where people were cooking soup at home and we were collecting it at a central point. The soup was then distributed by various organisations that were allowed to travel, one of them being the North Coast Orphan Fund who had a network of beneficiaries,” said Viljoen.
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With the community cooking soup, they needed containers and that’s where the Durban North community came in. Viljoen, who runs a literacy NPO with Loynes, shared news of the need for containers. Loynes put a call out to the community appealing for empty ice cream and yogurt containers and thousands of empty tubs poured in.
“As restrictions eased and people were allowed out to exercise, the streets of Durban North were packed with families between 6am and 9am. I put out the call just before that, with my address and I was inundated. They hung containers over the fence. Families and children were donating and the children were learning to give back. In two months, I must have collected 6000 containers,” she said.
Not only did the Durban North community respond to the container call, they donated toys and clothes for crèches. Local resident, Peter Walker also became instrumental in the project through his already established NPO, Good Luck Food which has been distributing soup for years, said Viljoen.
“They called us and asked if we could use the soup. They have become our regular mainstay of the soup we collect on a weekly basis,” said Viljoen. Under level 5 lockdown, the soup was distributed to families and in level 3 it was sent to soup kitchens as they reopened. “We feed on a daily basis through three soup kitchens, including one in Shakas Head, one in Shakaskraal,” said Viljoen.
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Some of the soup has also been distributed to local NPOs, Ubuntu Army and The Bhambayi Project, said Loynes who focused her efforts on running the collection point while Viljoen was working with the needy communities.
“As Megan went out, she would find destitute families, some with premature babies and we would put a call out for baby clothes. We have the soup kitchens in the north coast, we have the outlets there, but without the support of the Durban North community, we would not be able to feed people,” said Loynes.
For more information, call Loynes on 082 498 37 16 or Viljoen on 082 458 8811.
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