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District honours Soul of Africa sponsors
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| PDG Nick Phillips, Mike Gedye, PP Pat Draper, Sarah Gedye & DG Richard Fisher |
PAUL HARRIS PRESENTATION TO MIKE AND SARAH GEDYE AT
D9270 ROTARY FOUNDATION SEMINAR ON SATUDAY 18TH AUGUST 2007
We are privileged today to have two special visitors with us and it is my pleasure to be able to introduce them.
Even in this day and age of corporate social responsibility, it is always a pleasant surprise to find a group of business people taking the time to consider and react to the plight of their fellow man.
And when that business is a substantial manufacturing concern, complete with its own array of daily difficulties, cash flow, production targets, staff, marketing and the rest; then the phenomenon is even more laudable.
Down in the industrial area of Rossburgh, just south of Durban, you will find the sprawling factory of Michelle Shoes where the Froggie range of footwear originates.
A few years ago the owners of Michelle Shoes, Mike and Sarah Gedye were musing over how they could assist a small children's home for HIV positive children that Sarah had found in desperate need of help to improve the very run down facilities.
They, together with friend and business associate, Lance Clark, of Clarks Shoes in the UK soon thought up an innovative concept.
Lance, well known for his shoe designing abilities came up with the idea of a moccasin shoe, named 'Khulani' after the children's home, that could be manufactured by a combination of high tech factory input together with hand stitching by unemployed women in our rural areas.
Mike and Sarah wasted no time in erecting a small factory made of shipping containers at the back of their property and the brand, 'Soul of Africa' was born.
Despite all the usual teething problems associated with a new business, word soon spread around the world and orders for the shoes started to outstrip supply.
A trust was formed, now known as The Soul of Africa Trust to receive all the profits and handle the allocation of funds as it soon became clear that this would be a viable long term project providing funding for orphans and vulnerable children long after the needs of Khulani had been met.
In due course, Rotary in District 9270 and Soul of Africa got together and formed a partnership to identify suitable projects and assist in implementing them.
Three years down the line, Soul of Africa has enjoyed unprecedented success and world wide publicity for its concept, including a five page article in the international magazine of Rotary.
Led by PP Pat Draper in our Rotary District, Soul of Africa funding has been further enhanced by three District sponsored Matching Grants and now a 3-H Grant that we hope will be granted in the new year.
Total funding made or to be made available to Rotary by Soul of Africa and The Rotary Foundation for identified projects currently exceeds five million Rand.
44 Projects, 13 local Rotary clubs, 10 international partner clubs and upwards of 4,000 children will be beneficiaries.
And this is just the beginning.
In Rotary we never expect more than we need, so I wonder if Mike and Sarah ever thought that their kind thoughts toward a few disadvantaged children would ever lead to something like this.
When all is said and done, many thousands of children and numerous communities will be grateful for this intervention and, we will be able to say, proudly, that Mike, Sarah and their friends really were able to make a difference.
We believe that the award of a Paul Harris Fellowship, named after the founder of The Rotary movement, is the most fitting way that we can show our appreciation, as Rotarians, to two exceptional human beings who set aside their personal interests, looked far over the horizon and demonstrated the true meaning of our motto, 'Service Above Self'
Please join me in welcoming, to the stage, Mike and Sarah Gedye.
Citation presented by PDG Nick Phillips and recognitions presented by DG Richard Fisher
Submitted - 19 Aug 2007
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