“We want to thank everyone who made this experience possible for our children,” said Richard Malan from the St Laurence’s Children’s Haven.
The Haven is a registered Non-profit Organisation situated in Discovery, and is a place of safety for abused and abandoned children aged between six months and 18 years of age. It houses about 28 children on a full-time basis.
A church group from Weltevreden Park, called Band of Brothers, regularly gives back to the community through various projects. They got together with the Fury Motor Group, and identified the children of St Laurence’s as part of one of these initiatives.
“Together they decided to treat the children and the staff to a performance of Disney on Ice at the Ticketpro Dome in Northgate.
The Fury Group paid for half of the tickets and the Band of Brothers raised the other half of the money. They felt that it was the right thing to do, as these children also deserve to be spoilt and loved, even if it is for only one night,” said Peter de Kock, the Group Risk and Credit Manager at the Fury Motor Group.
A total of 40 tickets were handed over to the home, and the children and staff members were collected by Netcare 911 vehicles and dropped off at the venue. “The Motor Finance Corporation sponsored 40 beanies to ward off the cold, Spur Monte Casino sponsored 40 meals with cold drinks and the TicketPro Dome ensured everyone was stocked up with chips, chocolates and cold drinks,” said Nick Dolman, spokesperson for Netcare 911.
He added that Fury started sponsoring their Community Service Specialised Rescue Unit vehicles about 10 years ago, enabling them to provide a free rescue service to all community members and surrounding areas. “We were only too happy to be part of this initiative as it is a nice change from the very serious incidents we often attend to. It is good to be able to help others in different ways,” said Nick.
For the children from St Laurence’s, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity which they enjoyed tremendously. “It was such an awesome experience, after all, everyone loves Disney!” said Richard.
He added that everyone – from the youngest (six months old) to the oldest (70 years old) – enjoyed the music, colours and sounds of the show. “The only downside for us was that it was too short! But, it made such an impression on the children, they talked about it for days afterwards,” he said laughingly.
He concluded by saying, “My enjoyment lay in watching the children’s faces – I totally forgot to watch the actual show!”
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