The 2019 FNB Wines2Whales bike race is set to do more than merely race through the communities on their route, by partnering with local charity Samaritan’s Feet. The aim of this partnership is to distribute shoes to schoolchildren at the Botrivier and The Hickory Shack water points during the last leg of the race on the 2nd and 3rd of November.
Samaritan’s Feet South Africa is a non-profit organisation that aims to give shoes to school children who cannot afford it in communities across South Africa. According to Hermien Louw, the operations and events manager, the organisation doesn’t merely hand a child a pair of shoes but tries to connect with them as well.
“We give the children a new pair of shoes and we sit at their feet and actually wash their feet,” Louw says.
She further explains that this provides an opportunity to have a conversation with a child and give them hope, and the sense that they can accomplish anything. The organisation is also wanting to decrease the number of children who get infected with parasites and other diseases caused by walking barefoot.
There are several foot-borne diseases that can cause massive discomfort and even death, the organisation Samaritan’s Feet is trying to reduce these diseases in South Africa by providing shoes for children in need. Infographic by Elri Voigt
Currently, the shoes that are being distributed are sponsored by Bobs Shoes, and occasional other sponsors like Mr Price Sport. These shoes can be made available to children in need, through a cost-effective process.
“It costs us R100 to get a pair of shoes to a child,” she states.
According to Louw, the Wines2Whales race wants to support the communities around the bike route and does so by sponsoring two entries for each charity endorsed by the race which is then used to raise funds.
“The charity is also given the opportunity to serve the communities there,” she says.
A typical shoe distribution by Samaritan’s Feet involves volunteers connecting with children and giving them hope. Photo: Supplied.
The weekend of the last stretch of the Wines2Whales route will include two shoe distributions points over the two days. These distributions require volunteers to make it possible.
Two of these volunteers, Mardi Schuch and Hetty Orffer partnered with Samaritan’s Feet through their own charity, Youth4Life.
Schuch, managing director at Youth4Life, is passionate about working with Samaritan’s Feet because it provides children with more than just a pair of shoes.
“It is just as important to make them believe in themselves and give them hope for a better future,” she says.
For Orffer, the CEO and founder of Youth4Life, working with Samaritan’s Feet has allowed her to see the “joy on each little face, and the feeling of worth you can see in their eyes”.
It has also highlighted the need for Non-Profit Organisations to work together.
“I believe that if we take hands as Non-Profits we can reach more and meet more needs,” she explains.