A LOT has happened since the April floods in terms of distributing aid to the affected communities, and the good news is, it hasn’t stopped there.
After the rescue teams had been sent back to their respective stations, the Disaster Relief Support team, comprising two Durban North women, Sonja Horsley and Elham Hatfield, was born.
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This team of ‘superwomen’ has taken the stance of being proactive should another disaster of any magnitude occur, rather than being reactive.
Horsely, who is a swim school teacher by profession, told Northglen News that the Disaster Relief Support team is ready to assist families and communities who have been affected by disasters of some sort.
“We recently donated items to victims of the fire at Sim Place Informal Settlement. We also assisted the five families in Phoenix whose houses burnt down, just to name a few,” she said.
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Hatfield, who works in marketing for BAC Helicopters said she and Horsely decided to continue with the group which had initially been set up to assist search and rescue workers and flood victims.
“We decided to continue with the collection of aid because the need out there is great. There are fires and obstacles that people face nearly every day, and we want to be able to help instantly,” said Hatfield.
The team has been working around the clock to secure these donations from the Durban North community so that items are distributed as soon as the need arises.
“Sometimes it takes quite a while for disaster management teams to assess and get supplies to the affected communities. The people need food, blankets, etc, immediately, and that’s where we come in,” said Horsely.
Collections started in June, and a meet and greet was held at Beachwood Country Club last week. The next fundraiser is a golf day which takes place at Beachwood again, on August 26.
“The funds raised from the golf day will go towards the transporting costs of the goods,” said Hatfield.
The teams said although they are not a registered NPO yet, they appreciate every donation made from the public and business sector, and thanked everyone for placing their trust in them.
“I would also like to have more teams all over the country and beyond borders to do the same as Disaster Relief Support, and hopefully with the help of the government,” said Hatfield.
Disaster Relief Support will also hold a gender-based violence walk and talk on the Umhlanga Promenade on Saturday, August 20, where organisations and restaurants will come together and join forces in coming up with plans on how to protect women while they are socialising at various night spots.
“The aim of this walk is to create awareness and also to collaborate with restaurants, pubs and bars in the area and find solutions on how we can protect our women. Many of these businesses are already proactive in this. We will be doing the same in other areas soon,” said Horsley.
“Men are also victims of gender-based violence and also need support,” said Hatfield.
Anybody can join the march which starts at 16:00.
For more information, follow the Disaster Relief Support team on Facebook and Instagram.
“For the purpose of transparency, all our handovers are posted on our social media accounts so donors know where their sponsorships are going,” said Hatfield.
To sponsor aid, or for more information, call 067 402 5270.
