This year marked what would have been the 100th birthday of iconic statesman and South Africa’s first democratically elected president, Nelson Mandela and Ladles of Love chose to mark the occasion by hosting three major events around Cape Town, serving more than 1 800 meals in total.
At The Carpenter’s Shop in Roeland Street, a food and clothing drive was held for the homeless community with more than 500 meals served and handed out along with a goodie bag for all the guests. Each bag contained items like beanies and scarves to help them keep warm this winter along with toiletries and snacks.
Danny Diliberto, the founder of Ladles of Love, who has been working with the homeless for over four years said: “It was an awesome event with an incredible atmosphere – not only did we serve more than 500 meals, we also experienced our largest turnout of volunteers to date. It’s very inspiring to us to see that so many individuals and companies are keen to give back to the community and help those less fortunate. We hope that this spirit of giving continues long past Mandela Day and throughout the rest of 2018.’
In addition to this, Ladles of Love also held events at two Cape Town schools. Many children across South Africa arrive at school with empty bellies and are simply too hungry to focus on their studies. Another issue is, of course, funding for basic items such as toiletries and school stationery. In addition to serving the close to 1 200 children a hot, healthy meal on Mandela Day, Ladles of Love worked with corporate sponsors to provide the pupils with gifts to help them in their studies.
New backpacks, stationery, toys, toiletries and warm winter clothing were handed out in partnership with Circle of Love, Disney South Africa, The Really Great Brand Company and many others.
For Ladles of Love, the work doesn’t stop here. Their mission is to serve 100 000 meals to the needy this year and they will be doing this via their three soup kitchens per week for the homeless community and their in-school feeding scheme, The Munch Club.
The Munch Club supports three schools in Cape Town, namely Prestwich Street Primary School in Green Point, Ruyterwacht Preparatory and De Waveren Primary schools, both in Ruyterwacht.