Open Box joined the world in celebrating Nelson Mandela Day this year in donating 67 minutes of our time to service. Valley Development Projects, an NGO that we support, desperately needed a website for their organization, but were unable to come up with the funding to implement this. As such, Open Box developed and implemented the Valley Development Website for them, as well as providing on-site training for staff members of Valley Development Projects - all in 67 minutes! Although this was no small feat, it was greatly appreciated by the members of Valley Development Projects as something they can continue to benefit from for years to come.
Open Box has continued with their support for Woman for Peace. The dance program continues to expand and they now have 90 children ranging from 7 to 18 participating in the program and who practice at the centre every day after school. Out of those 90 there are 60 who compete in various competitions and within the last year they have entered 10 competitions winning 112 medals, 268 trophies and 400 diplomas. To date 8 participants from the program have become qualified dance teachers.
In addition to the Dance team, Open Box has sponsored a new program called The Diabetes Buddies programme. Diabetes is a huge health concern in the Mfuleni community and this programme aims to run weekly workshops for groups of 25 adults, all of whom are suffering from Type 2 diabetes, for a period of 6 months. The workshops educate diabetes sufferers about their condition, as well as providing ongoing health monitoring. Each participant is assigned a "buddy" to provide the out of workshop support and motivation to lead a healthy lifestyle. After their 6 months in the program each participant is given a glucose monitoring device, as well as a pedometer, to promote an active lifestyle.
Open Box also embraced the spirit of giving this Christmas in the form of donations of groceries, clothes, food and toiletries to a local NGO named Little Lambs (website designed by one of our very own developers!). Little Lambs is based out in Du Noon, which is a township in the Northern Suburbs. They provide essential items, such as food and clothing, to children who are orphaned or have been abandoned. They also hand out baby packs to mothers in this area, and support initiatives in the township such as a disabled center.
And finally, in true Open Box style we Suited Up in support of Casual Day this year, as well as sponsoring over 50 stickers for their cause:
