SAVRALA Golf Day puts a little Sunshine into special kids’ lives

SAVRALA’s first major event of 2011, our annual golf day in aid of The Sunshine Association, took place on the 16th of February at the Johannesburg Country Club in Woodmead.

Since its inception in 1976, The Sunshine Association, in partnership with families and communities, has been committed to the inclusion and advancement of children with intellectual, developmental and physical disabilities and delays.

Sharing smiles with the Sunshine Kids.

Today The Sunshine Association is a dynamic, progressive and innovative Non-Profit organisation in the field of intellectual disability, offering diverse services in direct response to needs identified in communities. What makes this organisation different – other than its obvious passion for children with intellectual disabilities – is a holistic approach and dedicated staff compliment who go out of their way to better understand and service the special needs of these very special children. The Association works hand-in-hand with families and communities, teaching them how to cope, manage and understand the unique challenges that are part and parcel of raising a disabled child. The sad reality is that in South Africa, thousands of disabled children are excluded from social services because communities are unable to cater for children with special needs. For the past 35 years, The Sunshine Association has, through their passionate approach to care giving ensured that these exceptional children are not marginalised but are successfully integrated into families and communities.

With over 124 players participating, the day was a phenomenal success – both on and off the course! Unfortunately the weather was below par, lightening called the game early which meant that prize giving began sooner than expected. MC Andre Watson was highly entertaining, keeping us all enthralled with his stories. Competition was tight but at the end of the day the Ford team of Hugo Delport, Burger Genis, Peter Sunker and Connie Arjoona took third place; second place went to the Hertz team of Mark Raubenheimer, Mike Martin, Roy Lynn and Brent Wilkins, while first place was claimed by the Ford team of Rodney Boy, Charles Naidoo, Mike McCullam and Shane Marais. Well done to you all on some sterling performances!

First place was claimed by the Ford team of Rodney Boy, Charles Naidoo, Mike McCullam and Shane Marais.

First place was claimed by the Ford team of Rodney Boy, Charles Naidoo, Mike McCullam and Shane Marais.

 

Once again, member companies rose to the occasion and there was no shortage of sponsorship in the form of donated prizes and sponsored holes. Special thanks must go to Nissan who were awarded the prize for Best Sponsored Hole. These guys went out of their way to raise as much money as was possible, with Derek Menday winning a Nissan 370 Z for a weekend. On behalf of The Sunshine Association, we salute Nissan for their efforts.

All in all, this contributed to making the day a resounding success, raising a substantial donation for The Sunshine Association. As always, SAVRALA is delighted at the spirit in which members rallied behind this wonderful occasion, given that we are all busy people battling to survive in tough economic times.

SAVRALA extends its thanks and gratitude to the generous sponsors who hosted various holes on the course – a big thank you for contributing to the fun and festivities. Your enthusiasm was greatly appreciated and very infectious!

A special thank you must also go out to the following for their generous sponsorship of gifts and prizes: Ford, Volkswagen, Nissan, Toyota, Hyundai, Tata, Renault, and Avis Fleet Services.

Linda Kotze and Jonathan Odes hand the Sunshine Association, the charity that SAVRALA has supported for the past 3 years, the healthy sum of R 100 000, 00 during a very emotionally charged hand-over ceremony.