Friends of Sandspruit appeal for help from community members
MORNINGSIDE – The Friends of Sandspruit have made great strides in the past year and appeal to the community to assist them.
The Friends of Sandspruit would like to thank the community for their efforts to help ensure that the Sandspruit River and Ernest Ullmann Park are kept clean.
The Friends of Sandspruit group was started nine years ago to help aid the conservation of the park and keep it clean. Thanks to the continuous efforts by this group and community, there is now a wide variety of birdlife in the park.
This year the group have accomplished a few of the goals which they had set out to do. This included the planting of more than 300 indigenous trees in the park, removing many invasive plants, clearing walkways and establishing various preventative measures against dumping in certain areas.
A committee member pays for someone to assist with clearing litter along the banks and in the river, every week, and they have also helped clear away more than 12 loads of rubbish belonging to a displaced person who was living in the park. The staff are busy Monday to Friday each week with clearing and maintenance along the river allowing local residents and dog walkers to safely enjoy the area. So far the group has also planned to participate in four of the A Re Sebetseng clean-ups as well as their own Mandela Day clean-up in July this year.
All of the group’s efforts require funding to help them continue their work. Two residential estates which had previously paid a monthly fee to help with the upkeep of the park have since stopped their funding.
Merle Finch, the spokesperson for the Friends of Sandspruit said, “We employ two full-time staff and we really need funds to pay wages and maintain the equipment that they use. We are open to suggestions from the community for events that they would support.”
The group tried various fundraising events over the past year including orienteering, hosting a talk about spiders as well as a guided walk along the river to educate residents about the plants, mammals and birds in the area.
Finch highlighted that they were open to all suggestions from community members which might assist them in their fundraising to continue paying the staff who help maintain the park.
Related Articles:
https://www.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/190303/keep-rivonia-clean/
https://www.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/196771/earnest-ullmann-parkrun-grows-in-popularity/
