Toti’s rallying around its own Cinderella restores hope

EDITOR – Every day we’re bombarded with reports of what’s wrong with our little town.

Theft, house-breakings, hijackings, political infighting, rampant drug use, poor service delivery – the list is endless and has often made me wonder if it’s not time to pack up the family and head for greener pastures.

Then yesterday a call for assistance went out on small community group on Facebook that changed my perception of our town’s future. A brave young woman, whose vision of a fairytale matric dance was quickly disappearing due to financial constraints, asked the community for help. As the day progressed I watched in awe as the community rallied around this young woman. Fairy godmothers (and fathers.) from all over our little town jumped at the opportunity to make this young women’s dreams come true. Offers to assist with dresses, photographs, hair and make-up, shoes, jewellery, manicures and transport came rolling in from complete strangers who asked for nothing in return other than a night to remember for Amanzimtoti’s very own Cinderella.

And it’s not just these wonderful people who are restoring not only our faith in humanity as a whole, but also giving the gift of hope that the tide is turning when it comes to our home town.

If we take the time to look, and stop focusing so much on what is wrong with our town, we’ll see that there are examples of this kind and considerate community spirit happening all over – Shaun Callaghan and his growing band of Army Saints, the Swanepoel family and their adopted stretch of river bank, the volunteers who feed and sterilize our resident feral cats, the graphic designer who traded her expertise for some home made pickles, the strangers who drop everything to help search for a lost pet, and the neighbours who get involved when a house alarm is triggered or a gate accidentally left open, to name but a few.

Slowly but surely we are evolving from a group of individuals who had nothing more in common than the town we live in, to a community of caring and compassionate friends.

And the next time I get bogged down by the constant barrage of negativity surrounding our little town I will focus instead on those who choose to lead by example, those community members who give willingly, without expectations. You’re all heroes in my eyes. Thank you for all that you do for our town and its community.