SA radio stations aid disadvantaged

Radiothon

567 CapeTalk held a radiothon on 26 January 2009 in partnership with Ikamva Labantu from 6am - 6pm and raised R3 750 190 for orphans and vulnerable children.

Ikamva Labantu is a community development organisation that feeds, clothes and educates orphaned children on R150 a month. It gives this amount to community carers who are accountable for the stipend.

Programming on the station for the day highlighted the plight of children, as well as the work done by individuals and organisations. CapeTalk listeners were asked to donate R150 per month, for a year. Pledges came from listeners as well as Cape Town mayor Helen Zille and premier Lynne Brown and the corporate community.

"We were astounded at the response; it was quite unprecedented. But what really impressed me was that the bulk of money was committed by listeners - it speaks volumes about the power of talk radio to mobilise people," said 567 CapeTalk station manager Colleen Louw.

Toy story

East Coast Radio's Toy Story 2008 campaign recently came to a close after nine weeks of collecting toys and cash for less fortunate children in Kwazulu-Natal. The campaign raised just over R1 million for food parcels and toys distributed to underprivileged children.

The food parcels, valued at R300 each, were supplied by Spar and were distributed to child-headed/care-giver households in the region, with a focus on those affected with HIV and AIDS. The contents of the parcels were approved by Spar's group nutritionist.

"The kindness and open-heartedness of East coasters is what made this campaign the huge success it is and East Coast Radio is very grateful for this overwhelming response. Toy Story is the perfect vehicle as we provide the opportunity for listeners to donate safely, confident that 100% of their donation is used for food parcels," said Nazarene Khan, East Coast Radio's marketing manager.

Sponsors of the campaign were OUTsurance and Spar, and facilitators included Rotary, Durban Deliveries, Red Cross Air Mercy Service and UTi Sun Couriers.

Dare to care

MPowerFM in partnership with BHP Billiton provided new school uniforms and stationery to eight street children as part of its Dare to Care project. The children, selected during a two-week campaign on MPowerFM in December 2008, are all from the Ethembeni Home for Street Children in Witbank.

“The children range in age from 6 to 14 years, and we know this will make a huge difference to their lives. We were transported around Witbank by Kohler Auto Witbank, and it's amazing how sponsors have come on board for this project,” said Louisa van Wyk, MPowerFM's marketing manager.

Thirty two children, also selected during the two-week campaign in December, will receive gifts from MPowerFM and BHP Billiton.

Sixteen days, 16 homes, 16 families

The Department of Local Government and Housing in Limpopo and Capricorn FM handed over 16 newly-built homes to 16 women in Fetakgomo Village, Limpopo in December 2008 as part of its 16 Days, 16 Homes, 16 Families campaign.

Capricorn FM raised a further R42 000 for the campaign, handing the money to MEC of the Department of Local Government and Housing, Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, for equal distribution among the beneficiaries. The event was part of 16 Days of Activism Against the Abuse of Women and Children and all beneficiaries were victims of domestic violence.

“We were overwhelmed with the response that we received from business owners and the general public and are glad that we share the same dedication and commitment to community building within the province,” said Simphiwe Mdlalose, CEO of Capricorn FM.

tru care

SABC youth radio station trufm (previously Radio CKI) has built a fully-equipped science laboratory at Unathi High School in the Eastern Cape.

Despite limited resources, the school had a 100% matric pass rate in 2007. This caught the eye of trufm management “The building of the lab is to encourage more effective teaching and also this is one of the ways that trufm is showing its dedication to the development of the Eastern Cape and its young people,” said Siphelele Sixaso, the station's marketing manager.

trufm, which has equipped the laboratory with all the apparatus and chemicals necessary to enable learners, has high hopes for the laboratory. “Who knows... a cure for HIV or AIDS might come from that classroom?” muses Sixaso.

Jacaranda 94.2 yearly CSI efforts

Jacaranda 94.2 has various CSI initiatives in place running throughout the year, from its Winter Warmer campaign which starts in May to Carols by Candlelight during the festive season.

• Winter Warmer, running May - July each year, provided 112 000 blankets and generated R2.6 million for charity in 2008.

• Sisters With Blisters supports Government's 16 Days of Activism against Women and Child Abuse, running in November. According to the station, last year's Sisters with Blisters walk received 2500 participants. Proceeds went to the Leigh Matthews Trust and Women and Men Against Child Abuse. More than R200 000 was raised through the entry fees of the 4.5km protest walk.

  Comments Jacaranda 94.2 CEO Alan Khan, “At Jacaranda 94.2 we place a lot of emphasis on this important event, as we realise that women make up a significant part of our community and that they play a vital role in building our nation. Innocent children also need to be protected at all times. With this walk, we are encouraging abuse survivors to speak out against violent crime and report their cases to their local police authority.

• Carols by Candlelight is run in November and December in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Nelspruit. The station collects new toys for each of these events and donates them to charity. It also collects money from the sales made on the selling of battery-operated candles and song sheets. Proceeds go to charity.

• Good Morning Angels is held throughout the year, along with special editions during the festive season. The last Good Morning Angels special edition saw the station give away R350.000 away in four weeks.