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Clay Café Commemorates Mandela Day: Crafting Connections for Change

Jul 17, 2024

Mandela Day is celebrated every July 18th to honour Nelson Mandela’s life and legacy. The UN General Assembly created this day in 2009 to mark his birthday, inspired by his call for the next generation to tackle social injustices, saying, “it is in your hands now.”

The 67 Minutes campaign, one of the standout initiatives, encourages people to engage in short, impactful projects like painting schools, cleaning streets, and making sandwiches. These efforts bring communities together and highlight important social issues.

In 2011, the slogan “Make Every Day A Mandela Day” was introduced to inspire daily acts of kindness. This year’s message, “it is still in your hands to combat poverty and inequity,” calls on everyone to support their communities actively.

Ceramic Painting at Clay Café for Mandela Day

At Clay Café, we take Nelson Mandela’s words, it is still in your hands to combat poverty and inequity,” we embody Mandela’s ethos by promoting ceramic crafts and meaningful connections with loved ones.

In our busy lives, it’s not often that we make a conscious effort to spend meaningful moments with those who matter most. At Clay Café, you can achieve this by joining us for a unique ceramic painting experience.

Bring along someone you know who could use a little extra joy and treat them to a day of creativity. Whether it’s a friend you haven’t seen in months, children from a local outreach program, or participating in any form of charity work, it’s literally in your hands to make a positive impact.

Creativity in a Nelson Mandela plate

Clay Café Hout Bay & Hangberg Dreams NPO

Clay Café Hout Bay has partnered with Hangberg Dreams NPO, a dedicated nonprofit organization committed to fostering recovery from addiction and related challenges within the community. Hangberg Dreams provides essential support and resources to enhance the well-being of individuals, families, schools, workplaces, and the broader community through various programs.

Their focus extends to vulnerable seniors through home visits and personalized outreach programs tailored to individual needs. They collaborate with other NGOs to ensure comprehensive support for personal growth and well-being. Annually, they organize a senior function to celebrate and support seniors, providing entertainment, pampering, and educational sessions.

In local schools, Hangberg Dreams conducts impactful substance abuse prevention presentations using visual aids and personal testimonies from program graduates. These efforts aim to empower youth and deter substance use through positive examples and educational outreach.

Clay Café Hout Bay will be packing 150 goodie bags for the Hangberg Dreams NPO for Mandela Day. To support Hangberg Dreams NPO or get involved in their initiatives, you can contact them directly: 062 291 471 / Email: info@hangbergdreams.org.za

Ceramics being donated

Clay Café Paarl’s & House Andrew Murray Children’s Home

House Andrew Murray Children’s Home (HAM), established by Dr. Andrew Murray, began in Wellington to provide education and skills training for girls from farms across the Karoo. Today, the organisation celebrates 125 years of impact, continuing to support children from diverse backgrounds.

HAM NGO

Clay Café Paarl will be donating 67 finished ceramic items (mainly kids’ items) to the children at HAM. Several staff members will visit HAM on July 18th to read storybooks to the children for 67 minutes. Customers are invited to contribute toiletries to benefit HAM’s children which they may drop off at the Café’s collection basket

How You Can Help HAM: Volunteers are essential to HAM’s operations, supporting various programs that enhance the children’s well-being and development:

  • Management and administration
  • Professional services (childcare, therapy, after-school programs)
  • Academic support (mathematics, science, literacy)
  • Arts and crafts, sports, and recreational activities
  • Spiritual and youth development programs
  • Therapeutic services and logistics
  • Fundraising initiatives

To find out more about how you can get involved, simply send them an email on info@andrewmurray.org.za or visit their website via www.andrewmurray.org.za

Clay Café in the City & Lolla’s Light

Clay Café in the City is proud to announce our support for Lolla’s Light. From July 18th to August 18th, we will donate 10% of all proceeds from ceramics painted at our Café to Lolla’s Light, an NGO founded by Maxine Beimel. This initiative aims to provide underprivileged families with essential resources they might otherwise struggle to access.

Lolla’s Light, spearheaded by Maxine Beimel, facilitates connections between 15 children and their families with donors who assist them in meeting financial obligations. The funds raised support daily expenses, medical bills, and counseling, ensuring these children have the support they need to thrive.

Maxine Beimel shares, “Our mission is simple: to ensure each child sleeps in a warm bed, with a full tummy and a happy heart, ready for school each morning.”

You can support Lolla’s Light directly through the QR code provided or by donating to the following Tyme Bank account:

Account Name: MS Beimel
Account Number: 51036704683

Visit their page on Instagram to find out more about this wonderful organisation

In the City is partnering with Lolla's Light

Clay Café Silver Lakes & the South African Guide-Dogs Association

Silver Lakes is partnering with South African Guide Dogs Association

The South African Guide-Dogs Association for the Blind is a registered non-profit organisation that relies solely on donations and fund raising events to help raise much needed funds so that they can continue with the life changing work that we do. Through training Guide Dogs for the visually impaired, Service Dogs for the Physically Disabled, and Autism Support Dogs for children, or providing Orientation and Mobility training to visually impaired people of all ages, they have greatly enhanced the lives of many, offering independence, mobility, and companionship.

At Clay Café Silver Lakes, we love animals and are proud to support an initiative that makes a significant impact on the lives of the visually impaired and their loyal, four-legged helpers. In honor of Mandela Day, for the entire month of July, we will be collaborating with the South African Guide-Dogs Association for the Blind.

15% of the proceeds from the sale of Dog Bowls and Kiddies Dogs will be donated to the South African Guide-Dogs Association for the Blind.

To learn more about their work or to contribute, you can view their website via www.guidedog.org.za or pop them an email at info@guidedog.org.za


As we reflect on the impact of Mandela Day and the spirit of giving, Clay Café invites you to join us in contributing to these worthy causes. Whether you’re painting ceramics with us, donating toiletries for children in need, or supporting local nonprofits like Hangberg Dreams NPO, House Andrew Murray Children’s Home, Lolla’s Light or the South African Guide-Dogs Association for the Blind, your participation makes a meaningful difference.

Through ceramic painting, we not only create beautiful art but also foster connections and moments of joy that resonate beyond our studio walls. Together, let’s honor Mandela’s legacy by spreading kindness and compassion in our community and beyond.

Join us at Clay Cafe, where every brushstroke and act of generosity brings us closer to a brighter, more inclusive world.

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