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The Blikkiesdorp project
The collective work of the Boundless Heart Foundation and Soli Philander's The Taxi feed 2500 children on Christmas Day
We speak to Andrew Gasnolar, the chairperson of the Boundless Heart Foundation, about the work that this non-profit organisation has been doing for youth in local communities in Cape Town.
The Boundless Heart Foundation started mobile feeding operations on 12 August 2011 and since then have fed over 710 people in and around Cape Town. On the fourth mobile feeding they distributed over 800 hotdogs to 460 homeless/destitute people in the greater Cape Town area.
The Boundless Heart Foundation and Soli Philander's The Taxi and the generosity of Metropolitan Health are going into the community of Blikkiesdorp on Christmas Day with the goal of feeding at least 2500 children.
The temporary relocation area with its rows of corrugated iron one-roomed 'houses' has been nicknamed Blikkiesdorp, or 'Tin Can Town', which is 28km from the City Centre of Cape Town, by the 17000 people who currently live there. There are about 9000 children who call Blikkiesdorp their home.
Blikkiesdorp due to the circumstances and socio-economic reality is a place of despair, abject poverty, drug-abuse, crime and hopelessness. The goal of the Boundless Heart Foundation and The Taxi is to restore hope to this community.
What does the Boundless Heart Foundation do?
Boundless Heart Foundation is an organisation geared towards providing youth with a platform for action. Currently we run a mobile feeding operation feeding both the destitute and homeless in and around Cape Town. We have run 5 successful mobile feedings since August and have reached out successfully to over 900 individuals throughout the City. Our plans for the new year are, amongst others, to provide mobile libraries to impoverished schools; work with FoodBank on our Mobilise to Fight Hunger campaign; work with three schools in the Cape Town Metropole on an Ubuntu Leadership camp where young people are able to take up their rightful roles within their own communities and partner with those children on projects in their communities. Boundless Heart is all about collaboration and working together with like minded organisations such as The Taxi and communities themselves.
Who started the initiative, why and when?
The organisation was started simply as an idea to provide a platform for young people to engage within their communities and it was born on 8 August 2011. The founders of the organisation are myself, Shamiel Hagee and Jasmina Gasnolar. However, the members of the organisation total a loyal 15 members are involved the planning and mapping of the organisation.
Can you share an example of how the Boundless Heart Foundation has made a difference in someone's life?
A destitute family live in the foothills of Bo Kaap (Signal Hill) - a family of young children with a family who struggle every day just to provide their community with sustenance. On 11 November the Boundless Heart Foundation undertook the task of distributing 800 hotdogs throughout the Cape Town area (Cape Flats, Southern Suburbs, CBD City Bowl and Northern Suburbs) and in the process reached out to 460 people. However, this community touched all of us - we were running low on hotdogs and this little boy Imraan (aged around 7) realised that we were running out and said to Jasmina "No, don’t give me one rather give Soraya a hotdog" (she must have been 5) - it is moments like this when we realise how powerful the human spirit of caring and giving is. Fortunately we had two hotdogs for Imraan in the car and we were able to provide something nice to this amazing young boy.
How can people help?
The Blikkiesdorp project is a mammoth task - the goal of feeding at least 2500 children on Christmas Day in the community of Delft where at least 9000 children call Blikkiesdorp their home. The type of help can be donations of juice, toys, biscuits, money (should people wish to do that) but most of all time - volunteers to make this Christmas a meaningful and powerful reminder to all those who live in this community that Cape Town cares.
The Boundless Heart Foundation
Andrew Gasnolar | +27 (0)72 293 2416 | andrew.gasnolar@gmail.com | www.facebook.com/TheBoundlessHeartFoundation
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