“As we prepare to celebrate Human Rights Day on 21 March, we are proud to announce that a significant proportion of the funds raised by Casual Day go
towards lobbying for the rights of persons with disabilities.”
These are the words from Casual Day project leader Celeste Vinassa.
Vinassa said South Africa’s foremost fundraiser for persons with disabilities raised R28 million countrywide last year.
“This is over R3 million more than we raised last year, which means we can expand our reach and secure greater rights for our constituency,” said Vinassa.
“Since the inception of the project in 1995, we have never seen such a massive year-on-year growth. The final audit has been done and the 2014 campaign has been closed off. Our aim this year is to spread the message of the social impact of the funds. Much of the work that we do is in lobbying for the rights of persons with disabilities at both the government and corporate level.”
Casual Day is the flagship project of the National Council for Persons with Physical Disabilities in South Africa (NCPPDSA).
Since 1995, Casual Day has made it possible for the NCPPDSA to fulfil its mandate of creating a fully accessible and inclusive society for all, raising R223 million.
According to Vinassa, this money will benefit thousands of persons with disabilities through the branches of the 12 beneficiary organisations in every region – R17
million was raised by the NGO sector, while the remaining R11 million was raised through in the corporate sector.
The beneficiaries of the funds, collected via a donation for a R10 sticker on the first Friday in September each year, include 500 schools and organisations that render services to persons with disabilities.
Vinassa said, “We must acknowledge the selfless work of Miss World Rolene Strauss, as well as our ambassadors and the media, who helped us spread the message last year. Casual Day’s mission is to raise funds, but it is also to raise awareness around disability, and we can only do this with our army of celebrity volunteers.”
Casual Day is on 4 September this year. Watch this space for the announcement of the theme and official colour of the year.
Details: www.casualday.co.za or 011 609 7006.
