Community Initiatives
Supporting the Community
The Zimbali Estate residents and members are committed to ongoing initiatives aimed at uplifting the community through employment, fundraising, skills development, and supporting local communities with their needs.
During the Covid lockdown and ensuing crisis, residents and members rallied together to ensure that suffering communities received good packages. On an ongoing basis, Zimbali residents assist non-profit organizations like the North Coast Courier Orphan Fund, by donating funds towards feeding schemes, and by supporting life-saving fundraising initiatives, wherever possible.
Zimbali Country Club
The Zimbali Country Club host various charity golf days, as listed below, during the course of each year, the proceeds of which are donated to the various charities in the local community:
Wildlands Conservation Trust
Look Good Feel Better Golf Day
Zimbali Rotary Golf Day
The Lawrence Anthony Earth Organization Golf Day
SA Disabled Golf Association Golf Day
Summerhill House Golf Day
Zimbali Charity Golf Day
St Olav Church Orphanage Golf Day
uMhlali Angling Club Fund raiser for local charities
iLembe Chamber of Commerce Charity Day
ZIMBALI ESTATE MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION
S’thenjisiwe Crèche & Pre-School
NPO 061-885
A community project was identified at the S’thenjisiwe Crèche and Pre-School, which is located in the Etete area of Kwa-Zulu Natal (between Shakaskraal and Stanger). The age group of the children registered ranges between 3 months and 4 years. The crèche also offers after care for school going children.
The crèche originally consisted of an indoor & outdoor play area, a small classroom with various equipment (including books, toys, educational equipment, etc)
Their needs included fencing, blankets, mattresses, building material in order to expand their classroom facilities and additional toilet facilities.
ZEMA donated building material to build an additional classroom, as well as cushions for use in the classrooms. One of ZEMA’s Residential Directors donated the funds for the erection of the new classroom.
Family Care
NPO 024-062
Family Care is a registered non-profit volunteer organisation (part of “The Family International”, an association of missionary communities, operating in 107 countries worldwide), which is located in Westville, Durban. All members are full-time volunteers dedicated to improving the quality of life of those in less fortunate circumstances in the surrounding communities.
Some of Family Care’s activities include food distribution (approximately 450-500kgs per week in the form of hampers to underprivileged families), winter projects (including distribution of blankets, warm clothing), distribution of toys, organizing fun days and entertainment for under-privileged children, motivational seminars, personal and family counselling, and HIV/AIDS awareness for schools and local communities.
Clowns 4 Joy is an “extension” of Family Care, whereby the volunteers work with children from all walks of life, assisting with parties for the underprivileged, as well as activities and classes for more privileged children during holidays and Christmas. Funding they receive from party entertainment helps to support other projects within the organisation.
During the last four years, Clowns 4 Joy has arranged the Zimbali children’s entertainment during the school holidays, including Easter Hunts and Father Christmas functions. They were also involved in entertainment for the Residents and visitors to Zimbali during the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup, as well as various other events that Zimbali has arranged over the years. Funds raised from these activities were distributed amongst the various projects run by Family Care.
Each Christmas, Zimbali children are encouraged to donate their old clothing and toys, which have been distributed to the underprivileged at Family Care’s Christmas parties held in the local communities, including amongst others: Asherville Children’s Home, Marianhill Children’s Home, as well as to children in the oncology wards at Albert Lithuli and Addington Hospitals.
Wildlands Conservation Trust
ZEMA donated funds to sponsor a bicycle for this charity organisation.
The Wildlands Conservation Trust is a non-profit organisation whose goal is to conserve the natural heritage and biodiversity of South Africa. To achieve this, the Trust works on four core projects with the community, corporate and private partners, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife and other conservation organisations. These projects are Conservation Space, Indigenous Trees for Life, Biodiversity Management Support and Green Leaders.
Wildlands teaches communities to grow trees as a way to make a living and rewards them for collecting recycling. Stores are set up in rural areas where trees and recycling are exchanged for food, educational support, building material and also Qhubeka bicycles. Wildlands then plants the trees in one of seven identified Forest Restoration areas in the area and recycling material is sold to recycling companies.
To date Wildlands has more than 4,500 “tree-preneurs” in 35 communities and over 600,000 trees are grown annually. Each tree will trap 250kg of CO2 over 20 years. In addition, there are 1500 “waste-preneurs” in 7 communities through whom Wildlands collects over 1,800,000kgs of recycled material annually. Each ton of recycled material avoids the emission of at least one ton of CO2.