The Southern Africa Firefighters Youth Development Association (SAFYDA) had a Soup Drive to commemorate Women’s Day. Marketing Manager; Priscilla Ferris shared who they are and what the association offers: “SAFYDA is a formidable example of what happens when passionate career professionals want to positively impact their surroundings while imparting some life skills through their vocation.
“What started out 15 years ago at the Florida Fire Station as a programme that was meant to keep Fire Fighters children occupied on Saturdays has turned into a fully-fledged Youth Development Programme.
“The founders of the Cadet programme; Jocelin Flank and Deon Esau are fire officers who between them have more than 50 years of Fire Fighting experience. You can find these two-gentleman putting the kids through their paces every Saturday at the Florida Fire Station or Florida Lake on Sunday from 09:00 -14:00 during the school term.”
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Ferris added that the programme accepts children from 12-18 Years old, and there are no set entry requirements, the association takes all children from all backgrounds.
“We have been fortunate enough to recruit 200 kids a year into the programme through pure word of mouth.
“With the growth of the programme over the last few years, there has been a strain on resources especially with the officers having to consistently fund the programme from their own pockets.
“This has led to a formal formation of a Non-Profit Organisation to try and build the profile and access funding avenues to grow and sustain the programme, shared Ferris. If you would like to know more information about the association or the programme that they offer you can visit their website: www.safyda.org.za.
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