Fellow Tablers as proud Round Tabler, but more so proud EP Area Chairman I hereby present you with my report for period July to current. As mentioned last time, it’s been a busy ride and there has been no change and the journey continued. Herewith I present you with a timeline following our last conference in Adelaide. A journey of 9760km mostly by road, but each kilometre was worth it, maybe not on the pocket though.
So, it started with…
Weekend of the 28 -31 July 2022 KZN Tri Area (2600km)
• A first for me at a KZN Tri, it was a great honour for me to have done the jacket exchange with honourable NNCA area chairman, Ronald Fagan
• It was quite a distance travelled but it allowed me and our area secretary to brainstorm quite a bit as passengers about some new ideas for our area.
• We manage to visit two tables on the way there Ficksburg 68 and Tugela 260, and many new friends was made over the weekend
Friday, 05th August 2022
Cradock 37 Chairman’s Visit(520km)
• After Passing 500 coal trucks Schalk, Ruhan, Paul and myself made it, to Cradock 37 and Simon Ward 41er well done to what you are doing, new young pipeliners, new ideas it a great to see. You are just one of those tables that put the head down and get the work down. Thanks for a great evening, super steaks and bietjie “Kommetjies” later that evening or lets say next morning. Simon, jy bly ‘n yster!
Weekend 25th-26th August 2022 Port Alfred 177 & Alex/Kenton 210 Chairmans Visit (320Km)
• Something new it was, double Chairmans visit in a weekend, thanks to Guillym for running with the idea, the idea was fellowship and a lekker weekend vibe and this exactly was achieved! To both tables, thank you for embracing change and driving fellowship, this is the name of the game!
Saturday afternoon 26th August 2022 PE West 142 Project Miles of Tins(10km)
• Rushing back the Saturday afternoon form the double raid, Schalk and myself still achieved to attend our tables project with the graveyard shift, to 142 it great to see how you interact with the public and the way the project has grown, and I know the elderly at ABCA has almost become dependent on this project annually since governments grands has dried up. Well done!
Weekend, 02nd – 03rd September 2022 EP Area CVC Weekend hosted by Cradock 37(520km)
• Well done Cradock 37 for hosting a super weekend, from inducting a member the Friday evening to all round gees and fellowship it was memorable! To Nico Schneider well done on your first meeting! The communication activity and videos doing the rounds speaks a million words!
8th September 2022
Fellowship evening
– Cradock 37 (260km)
• Jacques, Paul and I and stopped by the Thursday evening on the way to Tri Area Freestate, again a great evening! To Cradock 37 and Simon Ward, thanks to you and your families you are always just one call away and doors are always open to accommodate us or should I say the caravan doors. Honestly my favourite stay of the year, think it was my third time!
Weekend 09th – 11th September 2022 Tri Area at Aldam (FS, NC, STNOFS)(1700km)
• Jacques, Paul and myself set sail to our very first Tri Area in the Freestate, again the three of us came brilliant ideas in the car brainstorming and plenty of laughter…hoe maak daai man boys “Tsjek jou stuk n…..!” Awesome weekend of fellowship it was with the most breath-taking views. I am sure the videos bonanzas speak for itself the Friday evening. Saturday, we visited the three meetings of Freestate, Northern Cape and STNOFS. It is always nice to see the way other tables/areas go about their business, and we took some ideas away to improve our area.
Friday 30th September 2022 PE West 142 Project – Jail & Bail (10km)
• Need I say more, well done PE West 142, this project is going from strength to strength. This year it almost seemed you pulled in a real jailer from some prison. Let me leave it at that! Thanks Nico Schneider for joining the project, great fun to have had you present.
08th – 09th October 2022 Jeffreys Bay/Humansdorp 252
Boere Rally project visit (200km)
• I must do on the calendar, thank 252 great fun as always and to Wayne thank for the home hosting and late night Saturday, I finally introduced you to the 142 “Zumi” and took great affect on all. O don’t know when last a laughed that much. I hope your speaker is still working after you kicking it the entire night..lol!
Weekend, 14-16th October 2022 Alex/Kenton 210 River Ramble Project Visit (270km) • Wow! To Alex/Kenton well done on this new initiative, our know this is build on fellowship. Gents you nailed; fellowship was achieved met n a klein biethie gees! This is something as men we need to do more and as an area team! If you weren’t there you missed out. Well-arranged and goals exceeded! #alloutfellowship
Weekend, 28th – 29th October 2022 Adelaide 194 Vlakvark 500 – Project Visit (500km)
• In finally got the opportunity to attend this project as EP Area Chairman, and it exceeded my expectations. To Adelaide 194, well done on how you manage and organise this event and the success you achieve! Words can not really describe it one has to experience it for yourself! Well done gents, I had a blast.Gwheee…Ghweee….Ghweee
2nd November 2022(10km) PE West 142 Chairmans Visit (10km)
• Lekker manne, my trots PE West 142, thanking for the special evening and having some of the 41ers around! Great evening and one I will remember forever as a home grown 142 member!
Weekend 3rd – 06th November 2022 3rd ASSCO, Sani(2600km)
• Quite a bit of travelling, but worth it all! Probably the most beautiful place in South Africa for me! But at the business end of things, what a great fruitful weekend it was, not only this but the strong bond as an ASSCO group/Family and friends made for lifetime well done to the honourable president Werner Swanepoel and your team you are working the magic!
Weekend 18th – 20th November 2022 And here we are today, Spring Conference hosted by Grahamstown 11, Weekend (270km)
Gents furthermore its been rather busy, to be honest it sometimes got a bit much as I have not been home much, then my work situation with a restructuring added to some of the pressure. But one thing I have learned is, that the organisation is build on fellowship and being there for each other. I want to encourage you to step out and embrace the fellowship part of our aims and objectives. We as an area this year has not been that great on raids this year, I understand that funds play a massive role, but I have encouraged all tables to work on a travelling fund. I am stressing this, because I have come to realise how important the fellowship part is, things are tough out there and we need each other more than ever and we can be honoured to be part a part of this organisation because there are folks that do not have the brotherhood we have.
Gents on my travels it’s not been all play, I have been promoting us as EP Area of which I wear the elephant with pride! I have been taking best practices and new ideas from these travels and trying to implement to improve our area. I have at the CVC presented you with my single focus for the year, which is primarily sustainability of our area through a simple process of #REACH. React, engage, awareness, collaborate and doing all in happiness and in harmony. I encourage you to keep reaching out each to other and the public through the four key words with hashtag “REACH”, think reach in everything you do, I believe and trust that we will grow stronger and further improve as an area through this process and leave a sustainable area for future generations!
I want to end of with a thank you to my wife, Yolande Allers, without your support nothing of this would be possible, things were tough the last quarter but you stood by my side! Then to my exec, gents I truly believe that I have the strongest exec council around. I sometimes have to many ideas and scattered way of thinking, but you understand may ideas and simply then grab it by the horns and execute and implement them. Really a massive thank you for your support and commitment and embracing my single focus! With that said gents, giving it my all to make EP Proud, Die Balju a proud EP Area Chairman, I hereby move my report for adoption.
It has been a crazy couple of month’s and weeks from our CVC meeting. This time of the year it feels as if things are going at twice the normal speed and we are chasing our tails.
It was an honour to lead the CVC meeting held in Cradock and the attendance of the meeting and weekend was good. We topped it off with the rugby as well when the Boks beat Australia.
We have a lot of positives in our area and the guys are doing good projects to raise funds and to make a difference in people’s lives. The only negative thing we have is that they guys are not reporting it and if the do it seams to be a rushed thing.
Membership has increased by 10 members and we have 3 x resignations in the Eastern Cape. Maybe some good news that we are trying to get Graaff Reinett table up and running again.
I had the opportunity to attend PE West 142 Jail & Bail event and unfortunately something prevented me from joining Jbay 252 Boere Rally.
I then did a raid in Prieska as well as Paarl and Elgin 27
After my busy schedule we had Adelaide 194’s VLAKVARK 500 event and big it was, were joined by our Area chairman and EP Secretary Paul from Algoa 108. Massive weekend it was and only recovered the Tuesday ��
Again it’s an honour and a pleasure to be part of this organization where we make a massive difference in peoples lives and our communities.
Yours in Table
Nico Schneider
EP Area Vice Chairman
TABLES TREASURER REPORTS
Thanks for those who took the time and actually forward their reports to me. I just need to mention Stephan (Koeloe) from 194 he is really doing a fantastic job at his table and I receive the report the same time his fellow Tablers received it, it almost makes me feel like a 194er.
As you can see on our Whatsapp group, I’m not much of a gatlekker or talker, I’m here to assist if you need me to.
Well done on keeping your respectable tables finances on date and thank you for making the effort to allocate the payments to the correct accounts.
“I’m not saying its your fault, although you could have done more”.
MEMBERS ACCOUNTS
Please gents as Tablers we have to look at the members accounts, we know sometime things are a bit tight but we must make sure to clear our accounts now and then. Its something that caught our eyes (Piens and I) that there are a few Tables with high members accounts.
“I may say it was your fault, because I know you could have done more”.
Good day Gents
I Hope I find you all well and looking forward to a Well-deserved break this coming December. On my side I was busy with my secretarial duties and traveling a lot with our Area Chairman and fellow Tablers to Raids, out of area Conferences and Table events.
As Secretary I always tried to improve and simplify our Tables communications, from assisting Tablers on Tabler World, to bringing out the What’s the Vibe in EP Calendar, the info folder that we will bring out at Spring Conference in Grahamstown, is just that extra step of bringing that Professionalism to EP area and the Exec cant wait to showcase a new showpiece that will complete our conference. You will have to wait as see ��
Since Winter Con in Adelaide I travelled a total of 7160Km, covering most of our EP area and traveling to corners of South Africa I never visited before, from Free State cold and snow, to Green pastures and waterfalls, Drakensburg mountains and massive dams, we saw it all and we Really do have a Beautiful country.
November is upon us, so too almost the end of the to reflect back on the last four months as well as year on year metric.
Our EP founded “Don’t Camo Yourself” initiative grow, more requests for clothing and other items. – We had a slight double accounting issue at our last conference, brought on by incorrect figures from the manufacturing element, which lead to the Jacket Totals being inflated. This has been remedied as we continue to improve not only the ordering process but so too that of the logistics around distribution.
I can however say that as of today, we are one step closer to having a presence on the RTI online shop. Our camo speedo’s have also been tweaked to allow for a wider not Tabler event and have a great chance in being featured in an upcoming River Mile event. Who would have thought?
We have stepped up visual branding and looked to change up elements regarding the way our events and meetings look, like the backdrop and the pull-up banners. We were able to negotiate a better price for the backdrop which allowed for some budgetary savings and allocated some of the savings to the payment of the newly created Round Table Eastern Province Area Pin, with the 1st 150 pins recently arriving in South Africa. – We hope to be able to start distributing by Spring Conference.
From a brand exposure I have embraced multiple platforms including, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube Channel and believe it or not, EP now has a TikTok account.
From the above experimental media approach we have definitely seen some interesting trends starting to appear, there is definitely a “Horses for Courses” type of scenario playing out here.
I would love to impart some of the details to those looking to elevate themselves and be a little more effective in the presentation of the material.
What is however obvious, when looking at readership and support, is that doing the basics right from a collective point of view is fundamentally crucial. – In Other words, the more people who like, comment and share posts on the “Socials”, the higher the social media rating associated to a post.
For those that don’t know what that means, take Facebook for example, the platform allocates a score to relevancy or level of perceived importance when a post is interacted with by a large number of people. That means that people outside of the following have a highly increase chance of seeing the material as Facebook will carry the message
Therefore, a page with a high follower count, who actively engages one another on posts and other content will have a far greater reach. In addition, video content still seems to be the generally favoured option, though certain strategic placement of static posts have delivered great results.
For the last quarter, it is going to be my ambition to push for a “The Great Share” campaign.
We simply cannot elevate and continue to grow the movement and the exposure of Round Table specifically the work that is being done, if we simply do not share it. This is also evident in the sharing of the Inkundla and Trunk Tales magazines. – To illustrate my point, at the CVC held on the 3rd of September the question was asked how many of those in attendance shared the recent Trunk Tales and Inkundla posts, where to my surprise only 5 people raised their hands.
We can do better chaps, we should not be shy to share the content. To the Public, we are all Round Table and at times they cannot distinguish between the clubs.
This is an opportunity to grow our brand. – If we grow our brand, we are going to be in a better position to establish and retain corporate relationships, which would hold benefits for all parties involved.
On the Project Front, it has been my great pleasure to share in your successes over the last quarter.
There have been some magnificent events, projects and other initiatives, which inspire us all to take that extra step to a higher level.
Importantly, we are a group of like minded individuals, that can learn so much from each other, if the hand of friendship and support is extended to one another.
In Closing, I have tried to keep content relevant, fresh and at time a little quirky. -
Changing between video content, facts and other “interesting” images.
For those that would like to know, below are some of the EP Area Stats which might make for interesting viewing.
January 2022 to 1 November 2022 compared to the previous year.
Here is an Example of one of our most popular, “Meet the Chairman” posts
YIT Jacques van Wyk The BigBird EP PRO
It’s been quite busy here in Cradock since the CVC and I hope you enjoy our articles for all the projects we ran. A big thanks to the boys from Kenton, we really enjoyed the River Ramble and we hope it becomes a yearly event. I’d like to thank everyone for the articles submitted so far this year. All I can say is please keep them coming, I would very much like to finish of the year with a great issue. To my fellow council members, thanks for your support and fun we have had so far this year. Lets finish off the year on a good note and please support the induction dinners next year.
Stefan Maré Trunk Tales Editor
When it comes to being able to enjoy the luxury of a weekend away fishing with the boys, few things can dampen the spirits. Certainly, at the inaugural 2022 River Ramble, a few drops of rain didn’t stop Tablers from across the Eastern Cape enjoying Fellowship and hoping to catch ‘the big one’.
The brain-child of Tablers at Alex-Kenton 210, the River Ramble was held at the famous Horns Up venue on the great and mighty Kariega River. Snaking from the mouth at Kenton-on-Sea inland past farmland and towards the luxury Private Game Reserve Sibuya more than 10 kilometres upriver, the pristine river offered Tablers the chance to bring their own boats, throw a line, and relax on the banks of an ecosystem brimming with life.
Being the first ever River Ramble, a lot of thought had gone into logistics, but more importantly, the inaugural Convenor, Tom Sutherland (AK210), wanted to set the right tone for future events. Holding the vision of Fellowship in mind, the event was conceived as a chance for men to gather together in a remote location and focus on having real conversations about life, the Universe, and everything else in between.
Tablers from all over the Eastern Cape, including Cradock 37, PE West 142, Grahamstown 11, Algoa 108, Alex-Kenton 210, as well as (in)famous 41ers in the form of Eugene Catherine and Fabrizio Altichero, descended on the river-side venue on Friday 14th October. Despite some bleak rain on Friday, the Tablers spirits were not dampened, and the inland crowd from Cradock 37 and Grahamstown 11 gathered at Jeremiah’s at the beachfront of the Kariega River before catching the charter boat from Sibuya Game Reserve, up to the venue at Horns Up.
With camping and chalet options available, Tablers had the chance to kick off their work boots and walk barefoot through the soft sand (and mud) as they cast a line, cracked a beer and soaked up the magnificent beauty of the location. With a ‘pot’ for the biggest fish on offer, there was an eager determination from Tablers to get their line in the water and hook a big one. Different theories, baits, and tales abounded but the time spent just hanging out and having a good kuier with a line in the water was greatly valued by every Tabler present. Notable catches on the first day came from Terence Bellingan (GHT11) who got a sizeable Grunter and Chris Ovens (AK210) hooked a Blue-spotted Ray while the Area Chairman, Pienaar Allers, also caught a noteworthy Grunter from his boat.
Saturday dawned bright and mostly clear which saw the Grahamstown 11 Tablers out early looking for their quarry. While other Tablers slowly emerged to survey the ‘scene’ left over from the night before, a hearty breakfast and a fresh beverage got Tablers keen once again for finding the big one with boats heading up and down the river in search of live bait and secret locations. The day’s fishing was not as lucky as might have been hoped but there was no lack of action on the river as Tablers mostly fed the fish and tales got longer by the hour and into the night. The Area Chairman once again showed his skills as an angler and hooked a decent biggest fish. This is what he photographic evidence
The rain hadn’t fully left by the dawn of Sunday morning, but it soon cleared for breakfast and packing up time but not without some appropriate ceremony and a short talk on the purpose and aims of the River Ramble; Fellowship that is honest about men’s mental health and supporting one another during difficult times. In short, my short talk summarised that we are all facing unprecedented times and difficulties as young men and so we need to rely on the support of our brother Tablers rather than bottling up everything until it bursts out.
At the short closing, Thomas Sutherland as the 2022 Chief Convenor did his duty of handing over the mantle to the newly inducted Wayne Goldsmith who will convene the project in 2023; this will be no small task as this is sure to be a very popular event that Tablers from the Eastern Cape are sure to book very quickly! It was a great privilege to have spent the time with Tablers in such a beautiful location and a huge thanks must go to the Alex-Kenton 210 Tablers for the hard work, careful planning, and for making it a weekend to remember.
I can heartily suggest that you book your place on the next River Ramble as this is a Fellowship event that is sure to become legend in the future; the tales of the early years will become fabled and longer with each successive year just like the big one that got away.
Be sure to not let this be a one you let slip off the hook.
For Grahamstown Round Table 11 (RT11), it has been a busy latter half of 2022 with numerous fundraising, fellowship, and community engagement events and projects on the go.
The biggest highlight for the Club during this time has been another bumper DKMS Sunflower Day. With fundraising for blood cancer and blood disorder testing, tissue typing, and raising awareness as the mission for DKMS, Tabler Dudu Nyakotyo has turned RT11 into national leaders in selling ‘topes’ for the past several years. This yearRT11 raised over R37 000 to support people with leukaemia and other blood disorders. Special thanks must go to the staff and learners of Graeme College who on 23rd September again held a special Sunflower Day walk in support of the annual initiative. With dozens of boys taking part, this has become a valued event in the community calendar.
The very next day on the 24th September, RT11 Tablers set up a food stall at the Salem 8’s cricket tournament hosted by Salem Cricket Club. Against the beautiful backdrop of the church and school hall, and under a near hailstorm of cricket balls clearing the boundary rope, Tablers Elrico de Bruyn (Vie Chairman), Grant Gordon (Secretary), and Greg Wilmot (Chairman) cooked up breakfast buns, roosterbroods, and tasty steak rolls for players and spectators through the course of the day’s action. With a weary eye on the shower of sixes coming off the field, RT11 was able to raise over R3500 to supplement their Welfare coffers for distribution in the Makhanda community.
While the rest of his peers enjoyed a leisurely Saturday, Vice Chairman, Elrico de Bruyn saddled up for the Rhodes Health Suite annual Cyclathon on the 8th of October. With R2000 being donated by RT11 towards the Queen of Hearts congential heart disease project, Elrico tallied-up 81 kilometres over three consecutive Spinning classes.
On the 21st October, RT11 held the annual Charity Golf Day at the Belmont Golf Club in Makhanda. With sixteen 4-balls teeing-off under a shotgun start, the fun format of Scramble Drive, and paid-for Mulligans to help any duffed shots, it was a well run day. Apart from a generous host of prizes for the first seven places, the donated auction items is always a big drawcard for the event. With items ranging from Cloud Nine mattresses, Fibre installation and hosting, get aways, and a game drive, t was an excellent event that in total netted over R48 000 for Rt11.
On Saturday 6th November, RT11 Tablers got out on the trails of Mountain Drive as they ran two important Waterpoints on the 15km and 30km routes of the Oldenburghia Trail run hosted by Get-Out-and-Run. What started as very wet and miserable quickly cleared into a hot day out on the trail for the runners and Tablers alike. This is a fantastically beautiful route and an excellent event that RT11 will definitely be partnering with again.
Lastly, RT11 will be hosting the EP Area Spring Conference on 18 – 19 November where Round Tables from across the Eastern Cape with guests from across the country, will be descending on Makhanda.
RT37 introduced a different approach to the winter knights from what we have done previous years. The pandemic that passed initiated a new platform for us to use when conducting this project. Now for the second year our approach was to motivate the little KINIGHTS at the schools to become part of our project and collect old clothes and nonperishables, so introducing them to the giving way of Round Table.
We run a small competition with the projects with 3 buck sponsored form local farmers that allows all participants to go into the draw and also experience the effect of an unexpected return when you don’t expect it at all. The project works with great success and this year we managed to acquire approximately R 15 000 of nonperishables and R 3 000 worth of clothing. All acquired was donated to various organisations in our community towards their prospective causes. This initiate creates great exposure to our community young and all lining up the new generation of KNIGHTS to take our place one day.
Rudi Britz, Vice Chairman / Convenor, Cradock 37
The much-anticipated annual Cradock Round Table 37 Golf Day took place on the 17th of September 2022, held at the Cradock Golf Club. The day was highly successful and very well supported, despite rainy condition early-on. Players, their families, and spectators thoroughly enjoyed it and the after-party continued well into the night! The result was great exposure for Round Table and much-needed funds were raised for various charity organisations.
The annual FISH RIVER CANOE MARATHON was held early October this year. The tradition for RT 37 to run the bar was the 40th year this year. Overall, the crowd was ready for the weekend and enjoyed themselves to the fullest. Behind the Bar the most efficient team of Bar men and ladies that most event organisers have ever seen, RT 37 comrades. Best service was delivered and although the entries were on the fewer side this year it was still a massive success and a hell of a party. We made a profit share of just over 19k. Great fellowship and efforts put in by all members was highly appreciated. Looking forward to number 41 next year.
Rudi Britz Vice Chairman / Convenor Cradock 37
Cradock 37 was privileged to host the CVC meeting at
Lodge just outside town. The setup is very family friendly and we were delighted that quite a few ladies and kids joined us for the weekend.
The weekend started with a few people taking an early Friday, arriving by 3:00pm. Relaxing on the stoep and taking in the Karoo peace before the party got started… And what a lekker kuier was had! With great Fellowship and the Gees flowing strong. After the braai there were coin drops, dancing and jubilations into the wee hours of the morning! Mr. Wobbly did the rounds, bringing joy where he went!
The Saturday morning, we had some more maatjies join us for the meeting. Unfortunately, the delegation from Port Alfred 177 got totally lost. Apparently, the sheer beauty and vastness of the Karoo was too much for them… After a lekker Koffie en Beskuitjie (and a few regmaakerkies), we got down to the business at hand.
Dirosie Buffelshoek GameFriday night we also had the privilege of Area
inducting JC Combrink. This young man has a bright future in Round Table. Thank you to everyone who made him feel welcome!
Nico Schneider, Area Vice-Chairman, lead the meeting. We were honoured to have Dirkie Visser open the meeting for us. Dirkie is a Cradock 37 41er with a lot of passion for Round Table. He told of the first Numbers tour where Cradock 37 joined up with the European tables, organized via fax! A 101 Dance where the first prize was a flight to America! We are grateful to have such great memories shared with us. Nico and his team transferred some great knowledge to the incoming chairman, getting them ready for their year. A fun exercise pointed out the importance of clear and direct communication.
While the men were stuck in the meeting, the Ladies and kids were having a great time. They collected some Dog and Cat food and delivered it to the Cradock Animal Shelter. The furry friends said thanks with snuggles, licks, purrs and wagging tails. Afterwards the Ladies enjoyed some fellowship and gees at True Living Karoo Deli.
After the meeting, we watched the Springbucks give the Aussies a proper drubbing. Enjoyed a lekker hamburger and chips. For “Steek Jou Dood”, we played Sjoelen, a Dutch version of shuffle board. Well Done to Michael Ward from Algoa 108! Following this, some Mini Golf and Turkey Diving made us very thirsty… With the Ladies joining us again, a lekker stoep kuier developed. More Fellowship and Gees was enjoyed! A hearty lasagne kept the bellies happy and don’t get Callie van die Baai started on that salad…. Thank you to Pieter and the staff of Buffelshoek for looking after us. And a Big Thank You to every one that joined us for a lekker Karoo Jol! Ons maak weer so! Yster, Cradock 37
Table 37 had the opportunity to host this years annual Agricultural Show Dance.
Despite heavy rain, thunderstorms and loadshedding we managed to pull everything together and host an excellent dance. We were entertained by good music from Chris Brits and his wife, Elmari Brits. They pulled out some great oldies, but also had something new up their sleeve for the younger groups.
With Paul Maré as our chef behind the braai, guests were guaranteed, mouth watering steaks. As a new member of Table 37 it was great to see the Round Table Ladies and Gents working together and arranging everything to make it a wonderful and enjoyable night.
Yours in table
Kirkwood 78 and George have had a long standing tradition going back 11 years where our tables come together for one weekend of fun and building “gees”. It is a tradition that few tables can say they have and for the Kirkwood 78 Tablers it is one very high up on our calendar
This year is was George 30 turn to do some traveling, and after the drive and check in at their Guest house the Friday evening, we got together at our clubhouse for a Steak braai and “kuier” . Loadshedding tried to dampen our spirits, however we quickly found a new spot just down the road from the club house at our new member Estiaan’s house were we ended off the night in great fashion. Saturday morning we were up early and took a short drive to Philip Tibshraeny
family house on the Sundays River where we spent the day on the dunes and river having a splendid time.
We grabbed a “quick” bite to eat at The Grunters Pub before heading back to Kirkwood. That evening after a long day in the sun, we all came together where Convenor Ryno Lombard treated us to Pork Ribs on the braai. During this there were some formalities, like banner exchanges and speeches from the two chairmen. The traveling trophy was handed over to Kirkwood 78, signalling the request for us to return it to George in the coming year. Some of the Kirkwood Tablers were also inducted as Buffalo members which saw some fun and games between everyone ensuring in many stories to be told.
It was a great weekend had by all where old friendships were rekindled and new ones formed, and we cannot wait for 2023 when we travel to George for our visit to reclaim all of our raided items.
Yours in Table
Michael Schnetler
Membership has always been a big drive for our organisation, and Kirkwood 78 has had a good run in having pipeliners endure the journey of learning what Tabling is about and see the passion other Tablers have before deciding to join themselves.
Estiaan Ferreira officially joined Kirkwood Round Table on the 6th of July 2022, which was an extra special night with RTSA President, Werner Swanepoel, present for an official visit to our business meeting. With the Eastern Province Winter Conference that following weekend, it was decided that Estiaan would rather be inducted in Adelaide with a whole host of other dignitaries present and Table chairmen from the Eastern Province area.
Estiaan grew up on their family farm in the area of Elandsrivier and attended Nico Malan High school in Humansdorp. After completing his Matric he enrolled at Kovsies to study law and completed his articles and passed his bar exam specialising in criminal law. During his studies at Kovsies he met current RTSA vice president Louis Radley and Daneel “Shades” Meiring. During his 7 years practising law, he worked on high profile cases, one being where he gave expert opinion on the Oscar Pistorius Reeva Steenkamp case.
However, working with his hands was something he was always for yearned for, and returned home to farm with his father, but that was short-lived as he received an opportunity to apply his skills on a farm in the USA. During this time his plans were always to return to South Africa, and the perfect opportunity came up right here in the small town of Kirkwood with Meiring Citrus working in their brand new citrus packing facility.
Joining Round Table was definitely not a difficult decision for Estiaan as giving back in time and effort was always a moto that he lived by. Yours in Table
Michael Schnetler
The Jamjar Rally was created by Paul Engler and a few of his mates in 2012 as a fun boys weekend. News quickly spread and the following year there were quite a few more people wanting to take part which has led up to the great event it is now. Rules of the rally are four team members per car, your car must be older then 30years, may not cost more then R30 000-00 upon purchase and pimping is essential.
We started off with all participants registering and receiving their ‘goody-bags’ at something good at the beachfront which consisted of Jamjar Rally 2022 T-shirts, bottled water, energy bars, Hype energy drinks and a few smaller odds and ends. We had no idea what to expect as this was our 1st time taking part in the Jamjar Rally. But us being 10GREAT quickly adapted to our surroundings and we then hit the road at around 8am to our 1st stop which was at the Aldo Scribante race track where the guys had time to refill what needed to be filled and then we all had the chance to put in some flying laps trying to keep up with the lead car – a rather sexy Porsche.
Once we gathered all the cars we then hit the road through to the Addo hawkers market where the participants were encouraged to support the hawkers and also do some shopping for food parcels which they had to then hand out to those in need.It was really heart warming to see the hawkers reaction as we pulled into Addo as the Jamjar had passed there several years ago-yet the hawkers remembered the guys as if it was yesterday.
After a short break there we left and climbed onto the gravel where all the fun started. We head through the Zuurberg mountains where 1 of the tasks were to stop at the main house and pay R100 toll fee for passing their house. We eventually reached our lunch stop for the day where we were going to braai and do some team building events. Before we even managed to get unpacked for lunch some fine gentlemen thought they would get the ‘gees’ going by doing some doughnuts for us which obviously ended up in a complete disaster with the car laying on its roof and just ice and beers everywhere. Once we managed to flip the car back over,kick the windscreen out and clean up the mess that was left we decided to rather do lunch at the farm across the road.
After lunch we headed through to Somerset East where we all cleaned up and met for dinner and plenty of cold beverages at Somerset-on-main. We woke up on Saturday morning,got ready and head down to the Plaasstel for a great breakfast to last us until lunch time. After several hours on the gravel we eventually found our lunch stop where everybody sorted themselves out with a braai and some awesome tasks created to ensure the participants managed to score at least some points on their score cards.
These tasks consisted of mini golf chipping, sweets in flour and paintball balloon challenge – the participants really had a jol at this stop. After lunch we hit the road again expecting to be back at our accommodation at around 3pm….. Due to a FEW wrong turns we were a running a bit later then expected which led to more ‘liquid time’ which in turn saw a few people (including some PE tablers) running on drips supplied by a participant who is a doctor while a dop in the other hand. We then headed to the plaasstel for the rugby, prize giving,raffles and lucky draws which then obviously turned into a major party after the Boks won their game against Argentina.
After breakfast on Sunday morning all the cars pulled into the Mary Coetzee childrens home in Somerset to hand over bags of food and toys for the kids there. Just the look on their faces to see all the cars was a priceless moment and a memory that will last a life time.
All in all this rally was a great success and can only improve in the years to come. Thank you to each and every sponsorship we had and especially to the gents in Algoa 108 – we rocked this!
YIT
Shane Tait Convenor
I first me it was me, in EP area there is an unspoken rule that one must complete three Tri Area visits. So minimum two more for me, with out a doubt I will visit again. What an experience.
So we, Paul and Juanita Ferreira and myself and Yolande Allers set sail for a very long journey from Port Elizabeth to New Castle for the KZN Tri Area 2022. As the sun came up we stopped at Cradock for a quick leg stretch but also for a quick meet and greet with Cradock 37 Chairman, Stefan “Troep” Maré and lol to raid some stuff.
Then it was time for hitting the road again to our first destination in Ficksburg to be hosted by Louis and Colleen du Toit. I must admit the road was long but the entertainment in the car made it way shorter! Paul and myself came up with brilliant ideas through brainstorming to a point where we had to start making notes. LOL…we also came up with an idea to start a business called the “The Lube Guys”, don’t judge but instead whats app us for more details and exclusive offers! ��
We made it to Ficksburg after dodging potholes for kilometres in the east free state, fun it was! Then quick refreshment at the home of Louis and Colleen, then us gents went through to the Ficksburg 68 meeting, great meeting and great people and new friendships made! The rain poured down but did not stop us from making a fire, then back home it was for a night cap. Thank you Louis and Colleen for letting us in, you are super hosts and friendship made for a lifetime!
The next morning we went on a search for locally produced cherries and biltong in Ficksburg, then set sail for Newcastle. We stopped to see the beautiful town of Clarens then continued the journey and stopped in Winterton for some fellowship an banner exchanged with Tugela table. Then it was the last stretch to Newcastle. We arrived settled down and the four of us made a social braai the Thursday evening with some Gees!
The Friday we waited for the crowd to arrive and we settled us down at the local pub and so the other tablers joined one by one and built some Gees. Then it was over to the festivities of the evening, oh boy was it fun! Laughter dancing, new friendships, great food, great music. You name it and it was there an all-inclusive package for happiness!
Saturday it was the three meetings of the Drak Area, Natal South Coast and Natal North Coast. It started of an official opening with everyone gathering, then the areas split for the individual meetings. Everything was well organised and orchestrated. Paul and myself raided the various meeting during the day and exchanged banners, it was great to learn from other ways of doing things. I finally had the privilege and honour to exchange jackets with NNCA Area Chairman Ronald Fagan, a long standing tradition & exchange agreement between EP Area and NNCA.
Following all the formalities the fellowship continued throughout the day into the late night with great fellowship and Gees, some Michael Jackson and Twinkle Toe dancing by members of Free State and Bushveld Area! The next morning it was up early for the long journey back home, a big thumbs up to the convenors you made it a memorable one! Many thanks a weekend for the books!
Thanks Pienaar Allers, PE WEST 142
Let me start off by saying, a must do again!
The journey started off in PE when Paul Ferreira, Jacques van Wyk and myself started the road trip. We thought it best to cut the trip somewhat in two, so first stop was in Cradock and meeting up with the tablers of Cradock 37 the Thursday evening. Gees and fellowship it was, thank you to Simon and Rene that home hosted us! Paul and I in true fashion enjoyed our second home…the caravan, best sleep in town.
The next morning, the road trip continued with the last stretch to the Free State, but wait first a stop at the chemist to get some cocktails for a burning sensation in Pauls’ foot. Then quick snack at the Steers and of we went to take on another 800km. Finally, we arrived at Aldam about 100km north of Bloemfontein. What a beautiful setting overseeing Aldam. We all stayed with Louis and Colleen Du Toit in a chalet, thank you Louis and Colleen for letting us in, you are super hosts and friendship made for a lifetime!
The afternoon kicked of with some refreshments around the accommodation for some Gees building and great fellowship. Then it was over to the festivities of the evening, oh boy was it fun! Laughter dancing, romantic dinners, new friendships, great food, great music. You name it and it was there an all-inclusive package for happiness!
Saturday it was the three meetings of the Free State, Northern Cape and SNTOFS. It started of an official opening with everyone gathering, then the areas split for the individual meetings. Everything was well organised and orchestrated. The three of us raided the various meeting during the day and exchanged banners, it was great to learn from other ways of doing things.
Following all the formalities the fellowship continued through out the day into the late night, the three of us was responsible and decided to have a braai at the accommodation since we had to leave early the next morning, again it was great fun with Louis and Colleen that evening and laughed way too much!
The next morning it was up early for the journey back home, a big thumbs up to the convenors and Free State area you made it a memorable one! Many thanks a weekend for the books!
PE WEST 142
Round Table Port Alfred, together with Kenton, planned and hosted a joint Varsity Rowing Festival event called “Boat Races”. This event has been run by organizations in and out of Port Alfred but, in 2019 with an out of town company pulling out of the event, the town and tourism sector turned to the community for assistance and so Round Table took over.
Unfortunately Covid arrived on the shores of SA and this event was cancelled for two years. 2022 was our year to make it bigger and better. With copious amounts of planning done by Eugene Catherine, (past Area Chairman, past 177 member, Kenton 41er) and both Tables, we had very high hopes of a well attended and successful event.
Finally the weekend of the 16th of September arrived and all was ready thanks to all the hard work by the Tablers. With weather unfortunately putting a dampen on things and deterring many, the two Tables still managed to pull off an impressive event. We saw roughly 2000 rowers, guests, locals and judges in attendance. A lot was learnt through the planning of this event and mental notes were made for the future.
I would like to thank each Tabler who put in the hard work, especially my own Table, Port Alfred 177. There are many hours of planning and preparation leading up to such an event, not to mention the huge clean-up afterwards and everyone did their bit and more. It is greatly appreciated and definitely did not go unnoticed. A big thank you to all our sponsors who have been thanked in our local news papers and social media pages. Approximately 1000 man hours have been put into planning, running and completing this event. Bonds have been made in growing this and other events from strength to strength. Great team work was seen between Kenton and Port Alfred – looking forward to more joint ventures between the Albany triangle in the future.
YiT, JP de Klerk 177 Chairman
On 15th September 2022, we once again had the honour of hosting this years formal rowing dinner. Round Table Port Alfred 177 served 254 rowers, coaches and association delegates from nine different universities from across the Country.
The students came dressed to impress. They all looked beautiful and handsome some sporting the most outrages hair styles and colours, which I’m very sure they had been planning since the last rowing event!
The evening went off very well, with speeches and wise words from a couple rowers, then supper was served and followed by heart warming and very cool videos from each team participating in the event, the evening ended off with some yummy dessert.
This event has once again proven to us, what an amazing community we are lucky enough to serve. This dinner would not have happened without the help from the businesses in town. Unlimited Fitness, DKDK Distributors, Tashs Craft Bar, Pick n Pay Heritage Mall, Rosehill Super Spar, Kowie Tobacco, Hotspot and Kekkel and Kraai. Thank you very much for supporting us to support our community. Together we make a difference.
Evening gents. Just a small report on a bursary 177 give out each year to a Matric student.
"Port Alfred High School held their Senior Phase Prize-Giving on the 19th October, where I, JP de Klerk was invited as a special guest to hand over a bursary from Port Alfred 177. This award is handed out to a Matriculant as a contribution towards their tertiary education. This year it was awarded to Luke Knott, a talented young gentleman with an extremely bright future."
Port Alfred 177, along with the Rotary Club of Port Alfred, arranged a women's self defence course. Multi Security hosted this event on the 18th October where a few self defence moves were shown. Instructors shared their wealth of knowledge and gave valuable life-saving practical demonstrations with all who took part. All funds generated from the evening went to Bessies Daycare - a local children's day care.
A big thank you must go to Clinton Millard from Multi Security and David Branford from Resistance Fitness and Defence for their time and shared expertise.
YIT JP de Klerk
Round Table 177 Chairman 2022/23
Adelaide 194 is still doing our Soup Kitchen project and going strong for more than
2 years now. We are feeding more than 400 people weekly in Adelaide. This is for adults and kids.
Adelaide 194 was running a bar at the opening of the mill between Adelaide and Bedford and made an profit of R7k for the day. Well done to the guys and a huge thank you to the public for supporting the event.
What an amazing time we had with the guys from Prieska Round table.
I arrived on the Friday morning and we had some lekker fellowship during the day and then all went to hunt the Friday night into the Saturday morning. An huge thank you to Hechter and the guys for making all the arrangements and for some lekker fellowship and gees.
There were some proper gees and fellowship on the Friday as we started off at the local pub in Adelaide with a welcome drink and from there we moved to the hunters lodge Molweni.
Some guys enjoyed themselves with proper GEES and forgot to sleep the Friday night and went hunting the Saturday morning at 05:30.
Hunting day was a huge success and we managed to shoot our record to date of 173 pigs. After the weigh-in we moved out to the lodge again where we had a delicious spit-braai and the prize giving with some more gees.
After our prize giving we did our yearly auction and the guys really opened their harts and wallets for us this year and we raised R111 800 just on the auction.
We also had a Ceramic Kamado given as a sponsor where we sold tickets to a value of R20 000.
We want to thank our sponsors, Kelston Toyota, Dirk Ellis Volkswagen, Ngwenya Power & De Oude Fabreeck.
Our Vlakvark 500 project generated R472 630, this being our Bar that we ran at the lodge, entries of all hunters, sponsors, auctions and raffle tickets.
When the event is over guys cry because of this amazing event with proper fellowship, gees and charity.
Thank you.
Yours in Table Nico Schneider Adelaide PRO 2022/23
A huge thanks to the guys from Adelaide 194 on this amazing event that keeps on growing every year and guys can’t wait for the next one.
Dear fellow Tables,
My name is Caeden Bartosch, I am 32 years old and live in Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape. I moved here just over a year ago, after meeting my partner. Being fairly new to PE I had been interested in broadening my network and making new friends. I also wanted to use my skills and experience in event management to get involved with projects that give back to the community.
I am a big wine and food lover and enjoy being social and entertaining friends.
Morning walks on the beach with my partner and dogs is a mandatory routine for us and I also enjoy a bit of fishing and home DIY every now and then in my spare time.
After reaching out to each of the Tables in PE, I attended my first meeting at Zwartkops 195 in June after being invited by the chairman, Carl.
Since then, I have been able to get involved with many of their fundraising projects as well as make new friends. For me 195 is a fun table, we are serious about our goals and doing our part to give back to the community. The table is made up of a great group of gents who like to get the job done, without ever forgetting to have a good time along the way.
Since joining the guys at Zwartkops 195, I have been able to develop some good friendships and I look forward to being part of an organisation that shows respect, humility, and support to their fellow Tablers as well as their community.
I look forward to getting more involved and meeting other members.
Yours in Table
Caeden Bartosch (Zwartkops 195 Pipeliner)
and Dwain Goldsmith on the eve of the births of their second child! Dwain and Chris have due dates within 10 days of each other. Keep it real boys! Well done!
“To Develop Fellowship Among Young Men” the first words in RTSA objectives, River Ramble was the best example of how Alex/Kenton 210 does this. Early October 2022 on the banks of the Kariga River the rumbling of men having a good time was herd, River ramble had begun.
Friday afternoon Alex/Kenton 210 waited for clubs from PE, Cradock and Grahamstown to join us at a local watering hole where the journey would begin. Boats anchored on the beach waiting for passages to be ferried up the river to our home away from home for the weekend. A warm flickering of flames, the smell Shisanyama and the taste of an ice cold beer was how we survived the load shedding that night with good company.
The next morning waking up to the smell of bacon but seeing a tabler in his underwear franticly grinding at his reel trying to land a fish will remain seared in to my mind for ever, or so I thought. For a whassapp was sent out an induction would happen that morning.
Sitting around the dock at Horns up Guilym (Chairman A/K210) greeted all clubs, members and welcomed to the floor Mr Pienaar Allers (EP Chairman).
When my name was called it felt like I was back at school and getting called to the principal’s office. Looking over all the people sitting there I remembered all these faces staring at me was my brothers and there was nothing to be nerves about. Getting that pin on my shirt was one of the best moments of my life second only to marring my wife and the birth of my child.
Arriving home Sunday morning I greeted my wife hugged my child and thought to myself what a wonderful family I have in and out of Round Table.
We have been approached by Jolene Venter, business owner in Jeffreysbay which attended our previous Music Trivia and asked if we would be willing to assist them to organise another one for the year, but at Jolly Dolphin in Jeffreysbay.
This was for a child that needed a big operation, the Single mother could not afford the operation or has any medical aid in place. Jolene heard about the mother and child and approached us to see if we would be willing to help.
With this being a project - no income for us as Table, we jumped in and started to support them, we helped with prizes and advertising and selling Tables for the function and they incorporated us as Table for the event in planning etc.
Our infamous 41ér DJ Jannie Katakouzinos jumped to the occasion, and as always helped us again with the trivia, thank you so much Jannie for always being willing to assist with no charge.
They needed to raise approximately R28 000 for the operation and with the event and the auction that we ran for them afterwards, they managed to raise R35 000 in total for the event and paid the specialist directly to get the operation done.
We received very good exposure through the event in our community and now have more support from business owners in our community. This was a very successful project which we will definitely take on again had great fun as Table and team building.
Yours in Table, Gert Strydom
We hosted our annual Golf Day this year on the 5th of November at the Hankey Golf Club. We usually host our Golf day in St. Francis, but we wanted to try and support more of our community and decided to move the Golf day to Hankey this year.
PJ was appointed as the Convenor for the day and made sure all our Tabler’s had a job to do, from collecting donations and prizes and what to bring for the day itself. We decided to put up a watering hole on the course for the Golfers where we handed out some cold beers and “Oestertjies” shooters, and our first tee off was at 6:30 am, so this became a very long day for all of us up until the prize giving at 6pm the evening, but as per usual in Table spirit, we had loads of fun the day and some great team building and all the Golfers enjoyed it thoroughly.
Thank you to all our sponsors for the day and everyone that supported, we managed to raise R17 410 for the day which is really good seeing that we planned this Golf day in a very short period and we are really happy with the outcome.
Even if you don’t make thousands of rands, it is the exposure you get for getting out in the public and community and they can see what you as an organisation are doing for them.
It has been a really busy time for our Table these past 3 months, but it was all worth it!!!
Yours in Table, Gert StrydomOur annual biggest project of the year on the 8th of October. With lots of planning and meetings, we finally got everything in place to take on the day and this year, we were going on board with Tharros Youth Centre which is the children’s home in Hankey.
The morning started very early and of course our Tabler’s had some great gees and we started off with a Jaggermeister at 7am the morning just to calm the nerves and focus on what’s to come for the day.
After the setup, we had a quick meeting with all the stalls and getting them to their different points on the route. This was obviously a good idea to drive through the route and double check if all is on track, needless to say…by the time we got through the route at 9am, George was already on his 3rd “Danie Dop” Brandy and our pipeliner Riaan was driving us, wherever we stopped we had to test the stalls, and by the time we got to the end, we didn’t think that we were going to see the prize giving.
We had 92 participants for the day and we were greatly supported by our local businesses to run the stalls this year. We also had the pleasure of our Area Chairman and Area Secretary and their lovely wives attending, and Tablers from the Eastern Province, thank you so much for your support, we really appreciate it and hope you had a wonderful day with us.
We have managed to raise R43 000 in total for the project and with our expenses taken off, we still managed to pay over R21 050 to the children’s home. Thank you so much for everyone that made it a big success and especially to our participants and businesses that supported us to make this possible for them. We hope to see you all next year!!!!
Yours in Table Gert Strydom
“It’s only one straw” said 8 billion people ~ unknown
It never ceases to amaze as to the ridiculous amount of rubbish we have strewn all over our beautiful beaches. Picking up waste today, only to have to do it again tomorrow, it remains an ongoing struggle, one which could so easily be avoided if people took a little more pride in our country and its natural beauty.
Once all of our rubbish bags were piled into the back of Sonel’s car, we made our way to the Prickly Pear Restaurant & Bar in Blue Horizon Bay to watch our Springbok rugby team defeat Australia and to braai some meat.
PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19 joined by family and friends, met up at Maitlands Beach on Saturday morning, 3 September 2022, armed with black bags for a beach clean up, inspired once again by the Round Table Family Waste Challenge (5 Clubs 1 Challenge) which takes place annually in September, focusing on raising awareness on waste and challenging everyone to #Cleanuptheworld.
Written by: Cindy Tutton
PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19
This was a real eye opener for our Girl Gang. What a privilege it was to be a part of this awesome cause for these little warriors as we paid them a visit at Provincial Hospital on 14 September 2022. The week of PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19’s visit, was the same week that the Smile Foundation aimed to do 35 operations, mainly for cleft pallet and lip, which they call a Smile Week.
What is the Smile Foundation you ask?
“The Smile Foundation has helped over 4000 disadvantaged children with facial abnormalities, such as Cleft Lip and Palate, Moebius Syndrome (facial paralysis) and burns, to receive corrective plastic and reconstructive surgery. They are currently based in 12 of South Africa’s leading hospitals where they invest in development programs and purchase much needed medical equipment. With the compassion and support of their benefactors and teams of medical staff, they can sprinkle a little bit of magic into the lives of these children and give them a future full of joy.”
PE Pearls LC19’s aim was to give these little heroes each a teddy, to either put a smile on their faces prior to their operation or thereafter. These are not just any normal teddies, they are well mended teddies, kindly done by one of our members, Sonel Lindeque, which she then stitches over the lip area for the cleft lip and palate warriors, and gauze with stitches for the burn victim warriors. The aim is so that they have a friend that looks like them and might bring some comfort. Isn't that just the sweetest thing.
During our visit, these little warriors were so happy to see us and so were we. We had so much fun while they got to choose which teddy they liked. Choices were made from the largest to smallest teddies that you have ever seen, and a whole range, including Unicorns, Winnie the Pooh and the list goes on. What an amazing feeling it was to see the smiles we had created with these furry friends.
There were a few of the patients’ stories we would like to share with you: One was a little boy. He was about to go in for surgery for his pallet. At first he was hiding behind his mom and asked her to please open his bag so he can show us his Ben 10 teddy. He then later warmed up to the idea of choosing his own teddy from us as well. Well, he chose a big fluffy brown one with a big bowtie, which was a smart choice, because it made him giggle. It was such a precious moment.
Then we had a little girl who just had surgery for her ears. Both ears had to be restructured and the doctors used her rib for the cartilage required, drafting them from her mother’s ears so that they look the same. Our hearts melted at her delight when taking a big Winnie the Pooh teddy.
Lastly we would like to mention a little girl that was about to go in for heart surgery. She was not officially part of the Smile Week’s patients, but it was unthinkable to only hand over teddies to just the Smile patients. We therefore did not think twice to approach them as well. This particular little girl was sitting so quietly with her mom and when she saw these teddies her face lit up and she went straight away for the big glittery unicorn upon confirmation from her mommy that she may take one.
This was an amazing experience and it just goes to show, once again, that it is the small things in life that can make a huge difference in these children's lives.
A total of 20 cleft teddies and 62 burn victim teddies were donated to Cleft Friends at Provincial Hospital during Smile Week.
For more information on the Smile Foundation and Cleft Friends, please follow the respective links: https://smilefoundationsa.org/ and https://cleftfriends.co.za/
Written by: Chantalle Le Roux ~ PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19
On Sunday 23 October 2022, PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19 met up in the parking lot of the Animal Welfare Society, joined by Warren Bigara of Round Table Algoa 108, to do a handover of newspapers, pet food and blankets.
We had been trying for just over 2 months to collect newspapers, eventually extending our request to include pet food and blankets. Unfortunately with the internet being the primary source for news these days, very few people still read newspapers; those that did manage to source some papers for us however, made up for it by donating boxes and a car boot full. On enquiry as to how long our stack would last the AWS, we were informed that it “should last the week,” quite a daunting thought considering the amount of time it took to source what we thought to be a reasonably big pile of papers. We will however keep doing what we do, as every little bit counts.
We also took some time out to walk around the enclosures as one of our members is looking for the next addition to their little furry family. There are so many beautiful dogs and cats, desperately waiting for some kind soul to come along and take them to their forever homes.
Thank you to everyone who assisted us in this collection, and to Round Table Algoa 108 for donating 3x 8kg bags of dog food and a box of gravy sachets. All in all it turned out to be a Pawsome morning!
For more information on the Animal Welfare Society Port Elizabeth and how you can help or adopt, please follow this link: https://awspe.co.za/
Written by: Cindy Tutton PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19 donated beanies, booties, jerseys and other knitted items to BabyLoversBlessings on 12 August, 15 September and our very last hand over on 20 October 2022, a sad moment indeed.
We have been involved with BabyLoversBlessings since the beginning of 2020 and it is with a heavy heart that we now bid farewell to Caty and acknowledge once again the work she has, so generously and kindly executed, to make a difference in so many mothers and babies lives. Over the past couple of years, Caty has dedicated her life to this cause, putting together care packages for mother and baby, which she has personally distributed to the local maternity wards in need; but it is now time for her to retire and take care of family at home. PE Pearls LC19 wishes you all the love and best wishes for the future.
Thank you to Circler moms Jenny Tutton and Veronica Le Roux; Bernie and Flo (Bob Zeiss Bedsitters) from Methodist Homes, Roslyn Rose; and The Nimble Fingered Ladies Port Alfred Presbyterian Church, for your recent donation you so beautifully knitted for us; as well as all of our many more supporters for your contributions in the past. We will continue to put these wonderful knitters to work as there are still so many people in need of these items.
Written by: Cindy Tutton ~ PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19
It has been quite a busy few months for our PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19 Girl Gang, engaging ourselves in a couple of different projects, including our regular beneficiaries as well as some more recent concerns, namely Thuthuzela Care Centre and Forever Family Homes.
Lynne Swann (our lady with Cerebral Palsy, Epilepsy and Sandifer Syndrome) received her monthly donation of nappies on 13 September and 11 October 2022 respectively; and the Association for Persons with Physical Disabilities (APD) their monthly donation of cleaning products on 5 October 2022. We also took part in the APD Wheelchair Wednesday event on 19 October 2022. Please follow: https://www.backabuddy.co.za/lynnis-journey and http://apdnmb.org.za/ respectively for more information.
1 September was International Cupcakes for Breakfast Day and PE Pearls LC19 had our cupcakes in honour of those who have battled and lost, are still fighting, or have beaten Cancer, and all the people they have inspired along the way. please follow this link: https://www.dkmsafrica.org/get.../campaigns/ sunflower day
On 16 September 2022, PE Pearls LC19 proudly supported Sunflower Day. Every year Sunflower Day is celebrated in September to raise funds through the sale of Tubes of Hope (TOPEs) as well as to raise awareness of blood cancer and blood disorders like leukaemia, sickle cell disease and aplastic anaemia. For more information on DKMS (previously the Sunflower Fund) and how you can become a stem cell donor,
Their Mission is to promote safety in their communities, to reduce trauma caused to rape victims, to encourage the reporting of rape and to work actively to address these flaws in legislation. They also offer direct counselling support to rape survivors, provide community training and education programmes and also adequate survivor support services.
PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19 donated kid’s toys and clothing, curtains, linen, blankets and pillows to Desire Goodwin on 20 October 2022 for the Thutuzela Care Centre on 21 October 2022.
These survivors appreciate every little bit of happiness in their lives, so if we can create that with our donation of sanitary pads for the older girls and toys, bedding and teddies for the younger, it is so worthwhile to be able to make that difference for them! What a privilege it is for our Circle to be able to assist where we can.
Written by: Chantalle Le Roux ~ PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19
PE Pearls Ladies Circle No. 19 recently came across a Facebook post by Forever Family Homes that pulled at a few heart strings, resulting in a discussion and decision to donate some of what was on hand to this foster home.
Forever Family Homes provides one on one care to abandoned babies or children removed from their birth mothers through placement in one of their network of dedicated family homes. They also work with social workers to find a forever family for children who cannot be reunited with their biological families.
They have 2 baby safes built into the wall (at 63 Albert Road Walmer and 55 Grootboom Street, Arcadia respectively) which offers mother’s a safe place for their baby to be deposited, instead of discarding them in plastic bags, bins and drains, allowing these abandoned babies a chance at life. To date no one has used the safe in Albert Road, but one mother has used the information on the safe to reach out for help.
After visiting AWS on Sunday 23 October 2022, PE Pearls LC19 dropped off clothing, books and toys with Elmarie at Forever Family Homes, and got to witness the latest edition to the household, a 2 month old baby, having their mid morning bottle feed while the older kids kept themselves busy outside, playing games and running around, as kids do. It was a beautiful and emotional experience seeing the joy on these kid’s faces. Having met Elmarie and seeing what she does, we are hoping to be able to assist again in the future. Following an emotional farewell, we all met up at Tilla’s Pancakes for coffee and milkshakes before calling it a day.
For more information on Forever Family Homes and how you can assist, please follow this link: https://foreverfamilyhomes .org.za/
This is Port Alfred Ladies Circle in Formation’s first and ongoing, long term project. With this project we aim to collect blankets and other baby items, if people wish to donate these, as well as wool for all the knitters out there. We will then give them out periodically at our local hospital, to babies and mommies in desperate need. We have also joined hands with Kowie Wool Warriors to help knit for our project, we just need to supply them with the wool. So far quite a few blankets, wool and clothing have been received which we are so grateful for, the items we have received will be given out at a future date. We have decided to get wooden boxes built that can be used as a visible point for drop off, and have already secured a few spots to place these boxes, namely PicknPay, Bathurst, Kowie Vet, Pam Golding and BuCo. We now need to find more businesses willing to sponsor these boxes, and in return their logo will be placed on the side of the box. So far, Eco Rubber has kindly sponsored one box. Please make contact with any of our Circlers for more details and/or sponsorship –https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100084006618951
Port Alfred Ladies Circle in Formation joined a potjie competition hosted by our fellow Tablers, Round Table 177 Port Alfred, on 15 October 2022. We attended in support and won first place with a delicious lamb, which was marinated in buttermilk the previous night, and veg potjie with lots of spices and red wine in the sauce, we also made an amazing pot bread.
The meal was presented and served on a beautifully set table in smaller one person pots, and served to three judges with a glass of red wine and some chocolates. We won a few lucky prizes and a bottle of brandy and wine for “gees”. We have decided that the prizes will be split as follows: The bottle of brandy will be gifted to Grant Kew for his assistance and wonderful potjie making tips at the competition, the wine will be kept as a future thank you gift. Kowie Vet sponsored two vouchers which have been donated back to them so that they can in return assist clients in need, and the food vouchers (R500 FrozHen,
Wharf Street Fruit & Veg) will be used towards our year end social.
R250
Kind Regards
Sunnette Kew
Port Alfred Ladies Circle in Formation joined together and made a whopping 72 cupcakes that were donated to the Grahamstown and Sunshine Coast Hospice fundraiser for Cancer on 22 October 2022 at Rosehill Spar. We were received with friendly faces and a lot of appreciation from all involved and also received very good feedback from them. We will defenitly be supporting their fundraisers in the future.
Kind Regards
Sunnette Kew