The Heart-warming Generosity of Stewarts and Lloyd’s Winter Drive
With the arrival of colder weather, a heart-warming tradition returns once again: the Stewarts and Lloyds Winter Drive. At the core of Stewarts and Lloyds’ values lies a commitment to making a positive impact on the lives of those around them. The Winter Drive stands as a testament to this dedication, as the branches unite to contribute much-needed resources to their charity of choice.
As part of their blankets, scarves and beanies donations, each branch added their own creative touches; some received pet food donations from local donors, collected toiletry donations from staff members, made soup to serve to their chosen charity, and others spent time with those who were in need. The collective effort of Stewarts and Lloyds’ employees, clients, and partners paints a portrait of a community that stands together to uplift and support its most vulnerable members.
Read on to discover the unique ways each branch contributed to their Winter Drive and the heartwarming impact they made on their chosen charities.
BOOYSENS
Pioneer Old Age Home
Pioneer Old Age Home received blankets, scarves, beanies and much needed wire for their washing lines from the Booysens team. The team spent the morning preparing soup, distributing soup and winter warmers to the pensioners, and repairing the broken washing lines. A few songs were sung by one of our supervisors for the Pensioners, which was greatly appreciated by the crowd. Ryan Purdon, Booysens Branch Manager adds, “All in all a very worthwhile morning spent helping those less fortunate and making us all realise how lucky we are.”
CAPE TOWN
Keep The Children’s Dream
Stewarts & Lloyds Cape Town (Epping & Wetton) partnered with “Keep The Children’s Dream” , a non-profit organisation based in Strandfontein, for this year’s Winter Drive. The team visited a few informal settlements, where they arranged with community leaders to distribute blankets, party packs and food parcels to the children.
HOLDINGS
Solheim Retirement Home
For this year’s Winter Drive, Holdings donated to Solheim Retirement Home. To donate with the Stewarts and Lloyd’s blankets, Holdings collected toiletries that were much needed by the residents. In addition to the blankets and toiletries, a monetary donation of R10,000 was made to the home.
KIMBERLEY
Sally Aucamp & Destiny Home
Kimberley’s first donation was to the Sally Aucamp Home. Each resident received their own gift bag containing a bath towel & face cloth, shampoo & conditioner, toothpaste & tooth brush, bath soap and biscuits with the beanie & scarf set. Additional toiletries and perishable food were also given. Each worker also received their own beanie & scarf. The team also donated to Destiny Home, who are looking after 6 children and rely solely on donations from the public.
KLERKSDORP
Rethabile Children’s Home
For their Winter Drive this year, Klerksdorp chose to support Rethabile Children’s Home. There are 150 children in Rethabile, a 24-hour residential care facility that provides primary care, therapeutic services, and development programs. Due to the team not having budget, they turned to Pioneer Foods (Sasko) to assist with their donation, who very kindly donated 2 x pallets (1,5 tons) of Instant Porridge.
NELSPRUIT STEEL
Paediatric Care Centre Africa
Nelspruit collected baby clothes and also bought baby food etc to donate in addition to the S&L blankets. The team visited several informal settlements incorporating a diverse spectrum of people. Richard Myburgh, Nelspruit Steel Branch Manager, added that “it really opened their eyes to how poverty effects people of all races and ages.”
NELSPRUIT FLUID
Pro-Life & Christelik-Maatskaplike Raad
Nelspruit Fluid assisted two charities, including Pro-Life, a non-profit animal rescue organization. The team donated blankets, pet food, and toys.
Christelik-Maatskaplike Raad, an NGO that assists the less fortunate, was the second charity Nelspruit Fluid chose to support. The organisation received blankets, scarves, and beanies.
POLOKWANE
SPCA & Children’s Daycare
On the first day of their drive, Polokwane Fluid visited the SPCA, where they sponsored them with 20 blankets and R2000 worth of much needed food. Their second visit was to a day care that looks after children that are placed under welfare care. The team supplied the children and the workers with beanies and scarfs and spent some time serving them soup that was made by one of the Polokwane Fluid staff members. Monique Gobey, Polokwane Fluid Branch Manager, adds that “it touched all the staff members” and they all “realised how
fortunate [they] are”.
PRETORIA STEEL
Daybreak House for Babies & Doringbome Retirement Village
To assist Daybreak, Pretoria Steel donated S&L blankets and baby goods to the value of R1000, as well as something special to all caregivers and staff members. Blankets were also donated to the elderly residents at Doringbome. Pretoria Steel was also able to donatea few extra scarf and beanie sets to Pretoria Fluid in support of their Winter Drive.
PROJECTS & CONTRACTS
Sunshine Association
Projects and contracts visited Sunshine Association, a home for children with disabilities. The team prepared care packs with some toiletries for the children, to donate alongside the blankets, scarfs and beanies. The team also spent time with the children, feeding them during their lunchbreak. Desmond Tladinyane, Projects Specialist at Projects and Contracts, adds that “the look on the youngsters’ faces as they opened their gifts was priceless”.
PUMPS & IRRIGATION
Siyabonga Children’s Home
Pumps and Irrigation partnered up with the Siyabonga Childrens home, who take care of abused and abandoned children, for their winter drive. The team joined in the fun at their annual Donkey Derby Fundraiser as well as donating beanies, scarves and a water filtration system.
ROBERTVILLE
Wings of Inspiration
Robertville chose to support Wings of Inspiration Care Centre for this year’s Winter Drive. Wings of Inspiration is a Christian-based NGO in Roodepoort. The organisation is split into 10 groups, including an elderly care centre, dog rescue centre and recovery centre. The team donated blankets and lights for load shedding and took alone some cake and treats for tea time.
VAAL
City of Lux Dei Ministry & Engo Jeug Sorg Sentrum Sasolburg
In the aftermath of floods, Vaal provided shovels, gloves, etc. to Lux Dei Ministry. A further 12 blankets were sponsored from last year’s blanket drive. A total of R12 000 was also donated to the children of Engo Jeug Sorg Sentrum, including blankets, beanies, scarves, slippers, and treats. The team sang songs with the children and enjoyed cupcakes. Belinda Malan, Vaal Branch Manager, explains that the event was “such an emotional one” and “they expressed their gratitude in a very special way by performing a song and dance.”
VEREENIGING
PurrPaws for Life
Vereeniging collected and donated 650kg dog and cat food, blankets, toys, scarfs and beanies to the animals and staff at PurrPaws Animal Centre between Vereeniging and Deneysville. Michael Anley, Vereeniging Branch Manager adds, “I believe that what we give, we will receive.”
WITBANK
SPCA, New Life Church and Uitkoms
Witbank Steel’s first stop was the SPCA, where they donated food, treats, and 40 S&L dog blankets. Next, they visited the New Life Church home for children, where they donated clothing, food, and blankets as well as 20 S&L scarves and beanies. Lastly, they visited Uitkoms, a farm that helps homeless individuals get back on their feet. They received food and clothing donations in addition to 20 S&L scarves and beanies and 20 S&L blankets.
