Cape Town - Instead of a party, 19-year-old Giovanni Papier from Lavender Hill is planning to do something a little bit different for his 20th birthday on September 19.
He will be making a special Sunday lunch and treats for about 50 people at two old-age homes in Lavender Hill.
Papier volunteers at the Philisa Abafazi Bethu (PAB) family centre, where his love for community work came from, but he said it was on Mandela Day when he spent time lending a hand at the Village Care Centre, an old age home, that he realised how under-resourced these facilities were.
This sparked a desire to do something sincere for the elderly in his community and thus, he began planning this special birthday initiative to make a Sunday lunch to show some love to the elderly at Village Care Centre and members of the community on September 24.
“Everything is getting into place but there’s still a few things that I need to do to make this day special for them, including getting chicken, samoosas, cocktail pies, cake, chips and sweets,” he said.
Papier highlighted the struggles of the Village Care Centre.
He said their roof was in jeopardy, they were also in dire need of funds as they relied on pension and largely depended on donations to see them through. With 20 residents and 11 staff, Village Care Centre administrator Lynette Heavul said they had many challenges, but the key issues at the moment was having their roof fixed, sufficient food supply and getting electricity as the majority of their funds went towards electricity.
Heavul welcomed this initiative by the youngster and said the residents at the home would be overjoyed, particularly as they did not often get visitors or got pampered like this.
The youngster was also getting some volunteers together to do their hair for the day and said any donations would be appreciated to make the day special. Those interested in assisting can contact Papier on 069 497 1235 or inbox him on Facebook under Giovanni Samuels.
kristin.engel@inl.co.za