Johannesburg - Food relief organisation, Ladles of Love, have set their sights on breaking yet another world record on Mandela Day.
This time, they will attempt to gather the highest number of volunteers to offer 67 minutes of their time to design, craft, collate, create, or plant items for little children in ECDs and day care centres in impoverished communities on Mandela Day.
The organisation has impacted communities for close to a decade and has been a change agent from their humble beginning as a single soup kitchen, serving 70 meals a week, to now serving 37,3 million plus meals per week.
Ladles of Love joined forces with the AAA School of Advertising in celebration of Youth Month with the Youth Challenge Campaign.
The students are challenging fellow schools, colleges and university students, teachers and parents to help set this year’s world record.
They will be collecting essential items needed for the Mandela Day activation stations. By mobilizing the youth, Ladles of Love are encouraging them to be part of the solution and to become Love Activists.
We caught up with the founder of Ladles of Love, Danny Diliberto, to chat about his organisation as well as the impact his organisation hopes to have on Mandela Day.
Tell us about the first-ever soup kitchen you opened? And what you had hoped to achieve?
Ladles of Love was founded on the basis of an ancient Sanskrit word, ‘Seva,’ meaning giving of yourself and wanting nothing in return. It was upon learning this word and an interaction with a homeless man on the same day that I was inspired to start a soup kitchen.
At the time, it was about serving a fresh bowl of nutritious, tasty food that had to be served with dignity and respect. We didn’t see the homeless people as this, but as human beings, like you and me, and for this, they deserved to eat a bowl of food that I was prepared to eat.
Even though we began as a single soup kitchen, I knew we were going to be a lot more than this. I wasn’t sure what it looked like. I just knew it would be more.
What did Tata Madiba mean to you personally?
Madiba, for me, represented humility, compassion and empathy. He was not a man that saw colour but human beings that all deserved to be treated the same with love and respect. He understood what forgiveness meant and was able to love all equally.
Why are initiatives such as these so important?
Kindness and caring for one another is so important. It’s about taking the letter M in the word “ME” and turning it upside down. What do you get? You get the word “WE.” No longer can we do random acts of kindness. We now have to operate from a place of kindness within us and do daily acts of kindness. Being kind to ourselves, to each other, to everything around us, but most important, to our beautiful Mother Earth.
Tell us about Ladles of Love and the work you guys have done so far?
Ladles of Love is primarily a food relief organisation serving the homeless community and supporting over 200 soup kitchen, ECDs and schools around the Cape Peninsula and Gauteng. Since March 2020, when Covid hit our shores, we have:
– Served over 38 million meals.
– Distributed over 5500 tonnes of bulk food supplies.
– Almost 5.6 million sandwiches have been distributed into the communities.
– Spent over R1,2 million buying our community farmers’ vegetables in the last 20 months.
– Collected over 65 tonnes of food waste which we have converted into compost and distributed for free to our community farmers.
– We support 52 Early Childhood Development centres providing almost 3800 children two meals a day.
– Approximately 30 000 people are served a nutritious meal daily.
Mention some of the people you have come across who have been helped by Ladles of Love?
It started with the homeless people. In 2015, we started helping schools with food supplies so that they could give their kids food, and when Covid hit, we branched out into the communities around the Cape Peninsula (and now Gauteng), supporting over 200 soup kitchens with bulk food supplies to keep their pots cooking.
What are some of the challenges that Ladles of Love faces?
Our biggest challenge is raising the R2 million we require monthly to keep our organisation doing the work it is doing. Rising food costs and expenses this year has become another big challenge for us.
Tell us about some of the activities and initiatives planned for this year's Mandela Day event?
Our slogan says it all – One Day. One Goal. One Love. We’re calling on 6700 people to come do their 67 minutes with us.
What impact do you hope to achieve through the Mandela Day event, both for the local community and on a broader scale?
Mandela Day is, first and foremost, about bringing people together to do something kind. Many small acts of kindness combined create one huge impact of love. This year we’re calling on people to come do their 67 minutes with us, various tasks that will benefit our little kiddies.
How can individuals and organisations get involved in the Mandela Day event in Johannesburg, and what opportunities are available for volunteering or supporting the cause, and where can they buy their tickets?
Head to our website, www.ladlesoflove.org.za, for all information on the day. A pop-up window will appear, which, when clicked, will take you straight to Webtickets, where you can decide your task and time you want to do your 67 minutes. We’re also calling on corporates to purchase bulk tickets and encourage their staff to come and share the love. If any corporates are interested, they can contact Sarah at [email protected]
The event takes place in Cape Town's V&A Waterfront Look Out and Oranjezicht City Farm Market, and in Gauteng, At Eds, Old Edwardian Club, Houghton, tickets are available via Webtickets.co.za.