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On Wednesday, 7 April 2021, betting operator, Hollywoodbets, the South African Taxi Association (SANTACO), and the Ntenga Foundation stepped up for their communities by handing over 900 pairs of school shoes to children across the eThekwini districts.
Representatives from the recipient schools, SANTACO, Ntenga Foundation and Hollywoodbets, coupled with KZN Premier, Sihle Zikalala, attended the official ceremony at Hollywoodbets Greyville.
Addressing guests, Premier Zikalala emphasised, “We wish to acknowledge the wonderful, productive collaboration of Hollywoodbets, SANTACO and the Ntenga Foundation for extending a helping hand to 30 schools in eThekwini. Thank you for the continued support towards our children. They are the young leaders of this country and this contribution will assist them to build a prosperous future. I also want to commend the organisations for their further contribution of R50 000 worth of PPE to the schools.”
Siyanda Ntenga, Chairman of the Ntenga Foundation, elaborated on the significance of the project for the organisation, “I know what it is like to go to school without proper shoes; it lowers your self-esteem. Getting involved in such initiatives means a lot to me. These children will remember this day for the rest of their lives, so thank you Hollywoodbets.”
Additionally, the Chairman of SANTACO, Yusuf Khaliva, said, “To the team at Hollywoodbets, thank you for the sterling job that you have done here today. As we know, due to COVID-19, most companies struggled a lot. Instead of not doing anything, we sat down with Hollywoodbets and the Ntenga Foundation and decided to do something. It is very important because SANTACO is a taxi industry and most of the taxi owners never had school shoes to wear, so they used to walk barefoot.”
Expanding on the initiative, Commercial Manager of Hollywoodbets, Sandisiwe Bhengu, explained, at the beginning of 2021, in an effort to invest in our future leaders, Hollywoodbets embarked on a national Back to School campaign. Bhengu affirms the partnership with SANTACO and the Ntenga Foundation perfectly aligns with the betting operator’s work in the communities they work in. “It is heart-warming to know that we have played an integral part in this initiative as we will be making an even larger impact on the lives of young South Africans. We hope to work with SANTACO and the Ntenga Foundation on more projects and make further investments in the education sector,” states Bhengu.
Well done to those involved in the uplifting initiative. Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below.
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