Wednesday afternoon saw over 100 students gather at the Simonsberg residence tennis courts to do “Push-Ups for Puppies” and raise R3 000 for the Animal Welfare Society Stellenbosch (AWSS). The 30-minute workout session and fundraiser were hosted in collaboration by HIIT FIT Stellies and the Maties Paw Society.
Maties Paw Chairperson Monique Gerber explained that the funds raised by this event will go towards anything regarding food, care and maintenance for the kennels and the 150 dogs that live there.
Stellenbosch University students excited about the puppies at the Push-Ups for Puppies fundraiser PHOTO: Lloyd Smith
AWSS General Manager Lorna Hughes exclaimed that “It’s so lovely to see so many people support animal welfare and support our homeless dogs, as the more events that happen like this, the more awareness it can bring to other possible donors.”
HIIT FIT coach, Lloyd Smith, who came up with the idea for the event, explained: “We have hosted two charity workouts a year for the past few years and this is our second one for 2019, the other being the Move4Food event.”
HIIT FIT is a 30-minute workout for the girls on campus that is designed to be three times more effective than jogging.
Stellenbosch University students for the HIIT FIT workout to raise funds for AWSS PHOTO: Jessica Josephs
Gerber also spoke on the society’s first collaboration with HIIT FIT Stellies: “HIIT FIT is very popular among the students and it is also a very good cause to stay fit. We encourage this and want these fit and athletic students to take the time to maybe go to the shelter and walk the dogs.”
When asked about how one can go about taking the AWSS dogs for a walk, Hughes explains that “You can come in anytime between 10am and 3pm, any time of the week, fill in a form as a volunteer and then you get to take a dog for a walk in the vineyards.”
The handover of the raised funds will occur on Friday during the Maties Paw World Animal Day exhibition on the Rooiplein.