Everyone deserves love, a home and a hugg.

As part of my Public Relations course this year we had to choose a non-profit organisation that we would work with as our client. I worked in a group of two and we chose the Hugg Homes project in Port Elizabeth as our client. The Hugg Homes concept is one that recognizes the need that exists to house profoundly disabled people who are over the age of 18 and do not have someone who is able to look after them.

The Hugg Homes Project is the main initiative of the Perpetual Care Trust (PCT), a non-profit organistion registered with the South African Federation for Mental Health. The project strives to provide life care for profoundly disabled South Africans of 18 years and older in shared homes in the community.
The Perpetual Care Trust (PCT) for the Profoundly Handicapped* was founded in 1998 by Pieter and Leona Labuschagne and friends, with a view to addressing the issue and the one question that haunts all parents of the disabled: What is to become of our disabled child when we die, or when we get too old to take care of him/her?

My group member and I worked with Leona for the year to raise money and awareness for the Hugg Homes project. We managed to organize a Benefit Breakfast for this special organisation. Although we did not make as much money as we had intended to, we definatly raised awareness about the project. It is a wonderful feeling to help someone who needs it and we seem to have benefited from helping Hugg Homes as much as we hope that they benefited from our help. Personally I have become a lot more sensitive to the issues that surround the disabled in South Africa and I would encourage everybody to find out more about what they can do for the various disability institutions in South Africa.

To find out more about what is being done for the disabled in South Africa visit;
http://www.apd.org.za/

Everyday violence, just another reality.

The recent surge in violence in Port Elizabeth over the past two weeks has made me feel a bit nervous about living here. The stint by Steven Romer, where he shot three people and killed one, was a despicable crime that has left people feeling scared. The realisation of the surge in crime really became a reality to me when I was walking on Pollock beach this weekend. I was walking on the beach with my friend when we both noticed a man standing next to someone who was lying down. As we got closer we noticed that the man on the ground was not moving and that the man standing next to him was a policeman. The man lying on the ground was dead. It took me a while to realise what I had just witnessed. We both turned around and walked the other way in shock. That was the first time I had ever seen a dead body.
I bought the newspaper over the weekend and tried to see if I could find the story about the dead man that was lying on the beach but there was nothing. At first I thought that they would maybe publish something this week, but once again I found nothing about it.
This made me realise what I think I have known for a while. Our society is used to violence, death and murder. This is a sad fact, but with these things being around us all of the time we hace become desensitised towards them.

Electricity, the source of all life?

The blackouts and load shedding of electricity that have occurred in P.E. over the last few days have been a huge set-back for many. Businesses have lost money; motorists have been involved in accidents because the traffic lights don’t work etc. The reason for this load shedding in P.E. is because of the increased demand for electricity in the cold weather.

From a more personal point of view, the blackouts were frustrating because they came at a time when I had semester tests to study for and design work that needed to be done on my computer. Everything that I needed to do relied on electricity. It is scary how much the modern world relies on electricity. I found myself twiddling my thumbs for about 20 minutes trying to figure out what to do with myself without electricity!
Some friends of mine who were writing important semester tests were unable to write because the allocated test venues were in darkness!

Eskoms pleas to save electricity, simply put, are not working. A huge change in behaviour is needed, and then only will people consider trying to save electricity.

Perhaps I would not have been so frustrated by the power cuts if I had have been warned. DA Minerals and Energy spokesman Hendrik Schmidt said “Eskom has informed the public too late about load shedding and has caused massive disruption.”
Hopefully a more sustainable from of energy will be available soon; otherwise we are heading for a serious crisis if another cold spell decided to come along.

Junior Surfing Champs, from my bedroom window.

The vantage point that I have from my flat in Summerstrand allows me to have a perfect view of the pipe surfing spot at Pollock beach. From the 26-30th of September I had the privilege of watching the O’Neill Junior surfing championships from my bedroom window. I don’t know much about surfing, but I do know that the waves were generally pretty good and the contestants were eager to showcase their talent.
The turnout for the surfing competition was good, considering that the sun did not shine and it was a bit chilly.
Seen as though this competition took place right outside my window, so to speak, I decided to do some research on it. From some of the research that I did about this surfing competition I found out that the event was first held in 1996 and is the most important contest for junior surfers in South Africa. It not only determines National Champions in the Under 18, Under 16, Under 14 and Under 12 boys and girls age divisions but also determines the winning provincial team each year.
P.E. was privileged enough to host this year’s event, and it proved to be a successful host. The Pollock beach parking lot was packed with cars and combi’s from all over the country and, true to the surfing lifestyle, all of the vehicles were equipped with roof racks.
It was amazing to see such young kids with so much talent. In a society where it is so easy for kids to stay indoors and amuse themselves with video games and pc’s it was great to see that the outdoors is still an option for kids to have fun in.
Surfing is an excellent way to get kids outdoors to enjoy nature, the surf and the sand. Surfing is a great physical activity that teaches kids about the value of our precious ocean and how important it is to respect it.

To find out more about surfing, go to

http://www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za/