Winter warmth spread by corporate charity drives

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Jacaranda's Winter Warmer Campaign of 2011 collected more than R3.2 million which converts to 80 000 blankets for six primary charities selected for this year's campaign, Gift of the Givers, Lions Clubs International, Oliver's House, the South African Red Cross Society, Rotary International and the Salvation Army, as well as other charities in need.

This amount was raised through contributions from radio listeners, schools, the More Music May concerts at Montecasino, East Rand Mall and Moyo Fountains valley and the May Corporate Challenge. The initial campaign target of 25 000 blankets was exceeded in April, then doubled and tripled thanks to the support from all over the station's broadcast footprint.

Talk Radio 702 collected over 7 000 blankets and more than R75 000 for the Salvation Army, with the biggest blanket spender, Nedbank, which donated R50 000 worth of blankets. Both Builders Warehouse and KBC Health and Safety donated R10 000 each and Odyssey Capital Managers donated R5 000 to the charity.

Sešego Cares, one of the charitable arms of Absa Bank, donated winter garments such as woollen scarves, beanies, jerseys and blankets to 1 400 children at two Soweto orphanages - Jan Hofmeyer in Sophiatown and the Mthimkhulu Stimulations Centre in Meadowlands.

Absa employees donated wool and a group of retired women from Roosevelt Park's Rose village knit hundreds of winter woollies every year. The knitwear is then handed to Sešego Cares, which distributes it among charities that care for needy children. Soweto TV was instrumental in helping to select Mthimkhulu Stimulations Centre.

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