Today marks the centennial day of Nelson Mandela and a day widely known as Mandela Day – which calls on us all, to make the world a better place for all whilst celebrating Madiba’s life and legacy in a sustainable way that will bring about enduring change.
Brand South Africa took to Alexandra(Alex)township to Mandela’s first home, in support of Gift of the Givers and Cake Masters to hand out food parcels, hot meals, wheelchairs and participate in a tour at the Heritage Site.
The elders of Alex opened up the event in song and prayer, a way of showing gratitude and a reminder that all is well as the song sung Hayo mathata, Modimo ali teng (There are no problems, when God is present) reflected the mood for the day.
This was followed by the unveiling of an 8-meter-long cake baked by Cake Masters that captured milestones of Mandela’s life. “We wanted to encourage the community of Alex to stand up and make a difference, to be reminded of Mandela’s history and journey. That Alex was once home to Mandela and we must be proud”, said Mr Doctor Mokwena, founder of Cake Masters.
Cake Masters is a company run and owned by two young men from Alex, they approached Gift of the Givers to propose the idea of baking a cake for Mandela Day and share it with the people of Alex. This was best fitting as every year Gift of the Givers spends Mandela day with the community of Alex. “Gift of the Givers has been at this house for the past 8 years on Mandela Day we’ve been feeding over 300 people in Alex, said founder of Gift of the Givers, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman,
Dr Sooliman further adds, that “we are here today to highlight the skills of the people of Alex, we believe there are great opportunities for this place and when we were approached by the two gentlemen it created a catalyst to create something special”.
The elders were entertained throughout the day and given food and a slice of the Mandela cake and parcels to take home. “I love Alex because this community has great potential for positive change and I think it is important that we celebrate Mandela Day by taking care of each other and working to see the change we want Alex”, said Gogo Mangi
Follow the link to see the video of Mandela Day in Alex
https://youtu.be/WEg2E1cQHI8
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