MasterDrive reaches out with several initiatives on Nelson Mandela Day

As we approach Nelson Mandela Day during one of the times that South Africans are facing their bleakest financial situations, it is an important day to come to the aid of those in need. MasterDrive started off their contribution by assisting the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital’s drivers by providing training for their drivers.

South Africa knows that if there is something that our former president Nelson Mandela valued highly, it was the health, welfare and education of children. It was this dedication to children that lead to the establishment of the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital which opened in 2017. The state-of-art hospital in Parktown, Johannesburg provides living-saving care for children who suffer from illnesses that could otherwise result in their deaths or seriously impact their quality of life, if not managed properly.

The managing director of MasterDrive, Eugene Herbert, says that there are individuals who are part of the organisation that play an essential role. “The hospital employs drivers to help transport children to the hospital for treatment. The safe and stress-free transport of the children lies squarely on the shoulders of these employees. MasterDrive assisted the drivers by providing them with advanced roadcraft training to ensure that they have the skills to successfully do this.

“Their drivers joined us for a training session where their skills to ensure each child makes it safely to the hospital were improved. As individuals who work in the transport industry, we understand the importance of ensuring that the children arrive safely at the hospital without any additional stress or trauma added to their experiences. It cannot be understated. These children already face incredibly difficult starts to their lives, their trip to receive care should not be another source of stress,” says Herbert.

Following the training course, the drivers shared some of their thoughts about how important it is to have additional skills to transport children, in particular. Amongst other comments the drivers were enthusiastic to excel at their job and be adequately prepared to react to any obstacles they encounter on the roads. With so many bad drivers on the roads it is empowering to know how to handle these drivers.

Candise Matjila, a supervisor at the hospital expressed her appreciation. “The thought of working with a team of skilled drivers makes it a pleasure for me to manage the NMCH transport department. Not only that, but knowing that through their newly-found skills NMCH is not only minimising potential risk and reducing costs of vehicle maintenance but is also great for a charity like ours. My team and I are grateful for this amazing experience. Thank you, MasterDrive.”

MasterDrive appreciates the opportunity to assist the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital. “There are no words strong enough to emphasise the importance of a place of safety and comfort for these children in a vehicle and we are honoured to help with this,” says Herbert.

Johannesburg tackles hunger during 67 minutes

Each year the team commits to giving 67 minutes of our time to those in need on Mandela Day which has always been an important initiative at MasterDrive. This year, the team tackled one of the most pressing issues in South Africa currently: hunger.

The team made sandwiches for those on the street in need. The managing director of MasterDrive, Eugene Herbert, says: “With just less than 300 sandwiches a few team members set out with the help of Fox Security to distribute the food. By the halfway point, all the sandwiches were finished.

“We chose to address hunger as it is one of the biggest challenges facing South Africa following lockdown. It was an extremely sobering experience. The sheer quantity of people in need, just in our community, was overwhelming. The levels of hunger and desperation even exceeded our own expectations of the situation.

Though it was such a small gesture, all were extremely grateful. “This affected all involved. It helps you understand that even though you are facing challenges right now, there are others struggling to even access basic needs. It helped each team member appreciate what they have even more.”

In addition to the bleak economic future that we face as a country, the situation right now is very sad. “You know people are suffering and you have seen people queueing for food in the news but seeing it right in front of you, is something else entirely,” says Herbert.

Durban contributes to children

The regional offices contributed as well. Operation Bobbi Bear in Amazimtoti is a human rights organisation committed and dedicated to working with and assisting sexually abused children. Those in their care have been abused particularly throughout lockdown. “They are in dire need of support to provide for the children.

“With the current job loss, Bobbi Bear is struggling as they lose many of their monthly donations. Basics such as food, soap and toothpaste need to stretch even further than before, which is becoming impossible. These vulnerable members of society are often forgotten about and we want to make their lives a little more bearable in the coming days,” says Herbert.

Cape Town spreads road safety

The Cape Town branch decided to do something different, focusing on road safety. “Road crashes and fatalities remain a concern. We want to feed minds with road safety education and awareness. In conjunction with the non-profit Safer Roads 4 All (SR4A), we used motorsport as a platform to share the message via live stream.

“We used ‘cool cars’ such as drifting, sound and racing cars to attract attention. The presentations constantly reminded viewers about road safety including following distances, roadworthiness vehicles and many other topics. With the popularity of illegal street racing we illustrated that we too enjoy those pursuits but within the safety of a track with safety marshals and all facilities.”

It is for this reason, we encourage everyone, whether as part of a company initiative or in their own personal capacity, to continue doing what we can to assist our fellow South Africans. “The actions of one person can make the life of many people much better,” says Herbert.