Durban — Children at Qalakahle ECD (Early Childhood Development) Centre were ecstatic as they received milk, toys, tables and chairs at the Daily News Milk Fund activation on Friday.
Also part of the event were AmaZulu FC members.
The Daily News Milk Fund is 77 years old and was established by members of the Daily News newspaper to give something back to underprivileged children.
Owner and founder of Qalakahle ECD Centre, Jabu Ngobese, said the facility had been operating for more than 15 years.
“Seeing this facility growing and becoming a success fills my heart with joy because I love working with children, their joy is my priority and I believe that I am the best in town when it comes to looking after young ones,” said Ngobese.
She said the facility catered for more than 50 children.
“What excites me the most is that parents are happy with the service and children are learning and gaining the best experience out of this.”
Ngobese said that so far, the only challenge the facility faced was that some parents were not working so they could not provide food for the kids and sometimes she used her own money to feed them.
A parent, Debrah Mthika, said her child has been attending the crèche from the age of five months and has been going there for five years.
“The children have been receiving better care and it shows from their intellectual capacity that they are being taught with patience.
“My child is only five years old but her English is fluent,” said Mthika.
She said she is thankful to the Daily News for blessing them with such gifts.
AmaZulu CSI Project manager Mpho Dintwa said they were happy to honour the Daily News invitation.
“We donated essentials to the kids because it is important for us as a club to involve ourselves in activities that uplift communities,” said Dintwa.
He said the club had a lot of coming community development projects, especially in schools around Durban.
Daily News editor Ayanda Mdluli said the aim of the Daily News Milk Fund was to be a foundation that sourced milk and formula for very young children and babies whose parents did not have the means to properly provide for them.
“We are here today as part of our 145th birthday celebration to do a give-away to some of the disadvantaged children communities that we serve. It is our way of giving back to the communities that we serve and it’s our way of giving the young and the hopeless the chance to be able to grow and to be big, strong and play a beautiful role in our society,” said Mdluli.
This initiative was started many years ago as part of the Daily News Corporate Social Investment (CSI) responsibility as Durban’s premium media publication, he said.
“We are in a country where poverty is prevalent and hunger still widespread. This initiative is us trying to be part of the change we would like to see in the communities we serve by ensuring that we are doing the best we can to try to alleviate the negative impact of poverty and hunger in society.”
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