Remember, remember Casual Day is on Friday 5 September
Left to right: Khumo Moyane, who is a veteran Casual Day ambassador, with new ambassador Simphiwe Mkhize and Simon Manda.
2J Harmonix – or Jonathan Groenewald takes the stage to talk about living with muscular dystrophy.
Casual Day last week welcomed nine new ambassadors aboard to raise awareness around the project and its aims. The launch, where each ambassador signed a pledge to represent Casual Day, took place at the project’s offices in Edenvale. They are ready to ‘Bring out the Bling’ for the project’s 20th birthday.
Casual Day is South Africa’s most successful fundraising project for persons with disabilities – and the amount raised for last year has climbed to R24.8 million. Sponsored by The Edcon Group, Casual Day is the flagship project of the National Council for Persons with Physical Disabilities in South Africa (NCPPDSA), which this year celebrates 75 years of service to the community of persons with disabilities.
“Our ambassadors are persons with disabilities or people who have dedicated themselves to fighting for the rights of persons with disabilities,” says project leader Celeste Vinassa. “They speak from experience and knowledge about disability. It’s called ‘self-advocacy’. They are all people who have overcome great adversity, and are now ready to help Casual Day with its evolution. Casual Day changes lives one R10 sticker at a time. Our ambassadors are there to give society a deeper understanding of the world of disability and how to make the world a more respectful and nurturing place for everybody.”
New ambassadors:
Simphiwe Mkhize is a former TV actress and played Kukie on Muvhango. She was also a presenter on Zwahashu and Deaf TV. She is profoundly deaf and communicates through sign language or writing.
Rhulani Baloyi is the blind presenter of educational programme Shift on SABC 1, Trustee for SA Mobility for the Blind Trust, 2010 Tributes Award winner.
Kashveera Chanderjith is the first profoundly deaf chartered accountant in South Africa. She is audit manager at Anglo American and is one of Accountancy SA’s 15 women representing transformation.
Michael Stevens is a double amputee who is a volunteer for Jumping Kids, a registered not-profit organisation that facilitates access to advanced prosthetic solutions to those who need it most, children living with lower extremity amputations from formerly disadvantaged backgrounds. He is a participant in Vodacom’s Change the World initiative and owns a real estate business.
Irene Fischer was a young and popular traffic presenter on the Mambo Jumbo show on OFM when she suffered brain damage when a truck ploughed into her car. Against all odds, she survived and has made a miraculous recovery, but she is a hemiplegic, which means that movement on one side of her body, as well as her speech, is impaired.
Terry-Ann Adams lives with albinism and sight impairment. She is a presenter and newscaster at Campus Radio Tuks FM and editor of The Follow Through.
Bernadette Rigney, who works for the City of Joburg metro as the Transformation and Disability Officer. She has a rare condition called Arthrogryposis, which affects the joints and limits the range of motion in her hands and legs.
Thulisile Matlala is a CSI manager and disability activist. She was left a paraplegic after a shooting accident at school and is a winner of the Barloworld CEO Award. She is client liaison manager at Tshikululu Social Investments.
2J Harmonix – or Jonathan Groenewald – was diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy (MD) at the age of two. Despite being in a wheelchair, he has carved out a career for himself as a rap-artist.
Luvo Nelani is a human rights activist in the field of disability and completed her LLB at Wits in 2013.
Concludes Vinassa: “This year we celebrate Casual Day’s 20th birthday and invite everyone to help us celebrate the work of all our beneficiaries which are committed to advancing the rights of persons with disabilities. Apart from the services they provide to their constituencies, they are involved in advocacy and lobbying for the inclusion of persons with disabilities in mainstream society. All our national beneficiaries are committed to advancing the rights of persons with disabilities – and are representative of a spectrum of conditions and disabilities.”
- The beneficiaries of Casual Day are:
- National Council for Persons with Physical Disabilities in SA
- South African National Council for the Blind
- South African Federation for Mental Health
- Deaf Federation of South Africa
- Autism South Africa
- Down Syndrome South Africa
- National Association for Persons with Cerebral Palsy
- South African National Deaf Association
- National Institute for the Deaf
- Alzheimer’s South Africa
- South African Disability Alliance
- QuadPara Association of South Africa
Stickers are available from:
Edgars, Jet, JetMart, Boardmans, CNA, Red Square and Legit;
Absa outlets;
Game and DionWired stores;
Shoprite and Checkers stores; and
Casual Day national office on 011 609 7006.
FB: www.facebook.com/casualdaySA
Twitter: @CasualDay_SA
#BringouttheBling
#CasualDaySA
