Casual Day’s Eastern Cape Stars MyZA

The top performers in the Eastern Cape in the 2012 Casual Day fundraising campaign were announced earlier this week at a roadshow function in Port Elizabeth. The Association for Persons with Disabilities (APD), Nelson Mandela Bay, was named the top performing participating NGO in the region – and in the top ten in the country. Mr Brian Bezuidenhout, the organisation’s executive director who was there to receive the accolade, thanked his team for their hard work.

Buli G Ngomane, General Manager, Corporate Affairs at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, did the honours and treated the audience to a moving song during the proceedings. This was one of a series of functions to thank participants and get people excited about the theme and plans for 2013.

Last year’s theme was ‘Get on Board’, and judging by the attendance of 120 people, the Eastern Province certainly did that, dressing up on 7 September – as sailors, pirates, mermaids, captains, sea creatures of all descriptions. They supported Casual Day by not only wearing strange outfits, but by also wearing the official Casual Day sticker.

Casual Day is the flagship project of the National Council for Persons with Physical Disabilities (NCPPDSA), an NPO mandated to improve education, inclusivity, accessibility and social conditions for persons with disabilities.
APD Nelson Mandela Bay was among the many energetic and dedicated organisations whose volunteers have raised over R170 million over the past 18 years for Casual Day and its beneficiaries. The 2012 campaign has broken all previous records, breaking the R22 million barrier.

Mr Jakkie Pieters, Chairman of the Association for Persons with Disabilities (APD), Eastern Cape, thanked outgoing Casual Day sponsor Absa. At the same time he announced that Edcon, leading southern African clothing, footwear and textiles retailing group, has come on board as the main financial sponsor of Casual Day. Edcon has participated in Casual Day for some years and made a contribution to the sponsorship budget in 2012. This year Edcon has committed to a three-year contract as principal sponsor. Mr Andy De La Mer, representing outgoing Casual Day sponsor Absa, said that the bank had been a Casual Day partner for 16 years and would continue to play a significant role in the distribution of stickers.

Edcon CSI representative Haley Williams said that Edcon had signed a three-year agreement to sponsor Casual Day and that the company would continue to provide Casual Day with support as a distribution outlet for stickers.
Guest speaker Nthabiseng Molongoana, who has successfully overcome the obstacles of severe disability after a taxi accident in 1994, reminded the audience why it is so important for all South Africans to participate in Casual Day. She has worked at the Free State Association for Persons with Disabilities, one of the organisations that benefit from the proceeds of Casual Day, for the past eight years, serving on various committees of the NCPPDSA. She told her story, saying that one’s decisions around how one responds to such obstacles pave the way for one’s future. Her decision was to study and even though it took her a long time to complete her studies under difficult circumstances, what mattered was that she persevered.

The Casual Day 2013 theme was announced amidst much laughter. Project leader, Celeste Vinassa said, “This year we Go Big, so whether you wear big hair, a big tie, big shoes or just go big on the number of stickers you wear, anything goes, as long as it’s big.”

Acknowledged for their participation in bringing in donations for Casual Day were the stars of the Eastern Cape: