Rehana Khan Parker, spokesperson for Treasure Gems
We have fund-raised since 2018 for Victoria Hospital’s Abundant Life Palliative Care (“Hospital on funding drive for palliative service,“ Bulletin October 21). Our outreach includes paediatric cancer, abandoned babies, the seniors, and hunger and poverty alleviation.
Victoria Hospital is a state-run hospital in Wynberg for over 132 years and serves a wide geographical area providing primary health care.
Four ward kitchens are in an urgent need of an upgrade, and we are raising funds to refresh, replace and refurbish the four ward kitchens at an estimated cost of R180 000.
Regrettably, state budgets are under strain and the Department of Health does not see the kitchens as a priority at this stage. As such, the private sector can play a pivotal role to ensure the wards look good.
We held our fund-raiser with Voice of the Cape, our media partner, on Saturday November 6, at Tuscany Gardens, Rylands Estate, with the hospital board, staff and the community present. The theme was “mental health”, with Dr Adil Khan, Maryam Khan Waglay and Maya Kooverjee, drilling home that “it is okay not to be okay”. Soli Philander shared the taboos and culture of the metal health stigma in our community.
Furthermore, we gave a posthumous award to the late Shanaaz Parker, the author of several books, for her contribution to the community and her role in culinary development.
We call on the private sector to collaborate with us to achieve our goal to upgrade the four ward kitchens in 2022. Every sponsorship, however small, is welcome. Contact Nadia Ebrahim at 082 788 4239.