Pearl Valley Celebrity Golf Day raises R200k for charity

Celebrities included current and former SA cricketers Dale Steyn, Dave Rundle and Craig Matthews; former Springbok rugby players Schalk Burger, Rob Louw, Chester Williams, Werner Greeff, Toks van der Linde, De Wet Barry, Marius Joubert, Hanyani Shimange, Charl Marais and Nick Mallet, a former Springbok rugby coach and player.

This year's beneficiary of the R200,000 raised was the Child Speech and Hearing Programme, which aims to address the lack of provincial access to paediatric speech, language and audiology services in public healthcare.

"Even though the Estate is a respite from the everyday stresses of life, we still carry a moral responsibility to support those involved in the betterment of others, and the Western Cape's public healthcare services are in dire need of support, when it comes to preventative, rehabilitative and curative services care for children," says Gawie Marx, GM for Pearl Valley Golf & Country Estate.

Speech, language and hearing problems lead amongst the most common childhood disorders. Very limited Paediatric Speech, Language and Audiology services are available in the Western Cape, with children often referred to tertiary hospitals for diagnosis and treatment. However these services struggle to address the extent of the need, with over 800 children on a waiting list at the Red Cross Children's Hospital's Speech Therapy Department.

The Children's Hospital Trust has committed to raising R3-million to support a process to pilot the implementation of the newly designed model.

"It was a wonderful event and we are thrilled to be able to support such a valuable and worthwhile cause. A big thank you to everyone who contributed to the success of the day," says Marx.