In South Africa, Pink Lady apples and Tru-Cape Fruit Marketing combined with 100 women to raise R70,000 for transport allowing women to attend a breast clinic at one of Cape Town’s biggest hospitals.
It is the seventh year that Pink Lady apples and Tru-Cape Fruit Marketing have been involved in the fund raising drive in aid of the Tygerberg Hospital’s Breast Clinic Transport Fund, with the drive meaning that over 400 additional women will benefit from the fund.
The Transport Fund was started for the Breast Clinic at Tygerberg Hospital in 2010. The need for this fund was identified and initiated by a dedicated social worker at the Breast Clinic. It kicked off with a donation of R25,000 from the head of the Breast Clinic, Professor Apffelstaedt, and what started as a small-scale initiative to assist one patient in need has since grown to a fully-fledged fund that has helped countless women.
Some 70 per cent of women diagnosed with Breast Cancer at the Breast Clinic of Tygerberg Hospital are in the low income bracket, and whilst the government covers the treatment costs, their transport costs to and from the hospital for regular radiotherapy sessions often become a barrier to entry. Radiotherapy sessions last for either 16 or 25 days and the transport costs for these patients are often too high.
“This project is very close to our hearts and the continued support we have had from ladies throughout the Western Cape over the years, has been phenomenal,' says Liza Matthews, marketing manager of Pink Lady. “Every year just gets bigger and this year our tickets sold out in six days! A big thank you to each and every one who attended or made a financial contribution to this event.”
Marketing director of Tru-Cape, Conrad Fick, said after the event: 'It is a privilege for Tru-Cape to co-sponsor Crafts for Cancer with Pink Lady. This is a topic close to our hearts, as we have seen the struggle some of our staff has undergone during treatment.”
This year the ladies in attendance enjoyed a morning learning the art of Vintage Painting with Lizel Cloete, craft editor for Ideas magazine. After the crafts, lunch was served and Professor Apffelstaedt gave a speech thanking all the ladies that have a donated to the fund, making an intangible difference to the lives of those less fortunate.
“Tru-Cape would like to thank all the ladies who attended the event, for their current and future contributions to this cause, and for their passion for the event. A big thank you to Professor Apffelstaedt for the amazing work that he does,' concluded Conrad.
