A warming blanket drive in Marlboro Gardens

With winter’s chill creeping into South Africa, the need for warmth has become apparent across communities which, historically, enjoy less comfort.

It was a desire to share in warmth and comfort that Connect2Feed hosted a blanket drive initiative in Marlboro Gardens on May 19. The organisation handed out 120 blankets to Stjwetla, Marlboro and Alexandra community members from the Shree Radhe Shyam Mandir gate.

Kirit Acharya, resident priest of the Shree Radhe Shyam Mandir, celebrated how the Marlboro Gardens temple had amassed a 30-year legacy of serving the deserving within their community. The team feeds about 500 people with bread, fruits, noodles, or soup depending on what they have available on the day.

Being their third drive, Acharya praised the contributions of Connect2Feed, and the Bengali Association of South Africa (Basa) for reaching out to the temple for their outreach projects. “It’s winter, and we all need to keep warm. There are small children outside with their mothers, and they also need blankets and warmth.”

Basa president Gourish Chakravorty said the association held strong ties to the Marlboro Gardens community. He defined the relationship established as one allowing for the service of humanity for the communities surrounding Marlboro Gardens. “As people who are close to this temple, when we travel from the highway, through the settlement, we see how people live, and how the children are moving around the street.

“Marlboro community is very close to Alex, where many people are staying poor. We felt that we should be doing this here, where the most deserving people stay. We are very familiar with Marlboro Gardens, as we come to this temple for most of our functions.”

Related article: Tips to help Sandton survive cyberattacks

Cook-off and fashion show for moms in Gallo Manor

Wine tasting and food pairing hits Sandton