Thursday, 16 July 2009

The Dis-Chem Foundation Fund and Primedia Broadcasting’s four radio stations have partnered together to help improve the lives of people in need across South Africa.

The Dis-Chem Foundation Fund – a beneficiary of Dis-Chem Pharmacies’ Benefits Programme – gives Dis-Chem shoppers the opportunity to donate a percentage of the value of their purchase towards worthy causes each time they swipe their membership card at any Dis-Chem pharmacy. Dis-Chem further adds to the kitty when and where it is needed.

Throughout the year 94.7 Highveld Stereo and Talk Radio 702 in Gauteng and 94.5 Kfm and CapeTalk in Cape Town, look for various ways to provide care and support to charities, organisations or groups of individuals in desperate need of help.

By partnering with the Dis-chem Foundation, the radio stations are able to make a number of social investments.

CapeTalk focused its attention on helping street vendors. In May, 567 CapeTalk host, Soli Philander, graced the cover of The Big Issue’s ‘Quiet Edition’ and took to the streets of Cape Town with celebrity friends, to help the vendors sell out this issue. They achieved their goal, and for many of the vendors, it was their biggest payday ever.

When the rain started pouring in the mother city at the beginning of winter, Soli thought of the vendors once again, trying to sell magazines to feed their children and send them to school, despite the freezing cold and wet. He approached the Dis-chem Foundation who willingly agreed to provide 350 heavy-duty, high-visibility rain suits to the vendors.

The Foundation also got involved in Talk Radio 702’s annual Birthday Wish campaign by donating a total of R100 000 towards the medical costs of a paralysed woman and an eight-month-old leukemia sufferer.

In celebration of Youth Day on 16 June, Dis-Chem and 94.7 Highveld Stereo’s Rude Awakening focused their attention on underprivileged children and donated a total of R120 000 to six charitable causes, including Little Eden, a home for the mentally handicapped; and Winnie Ngwekazi Primary School, for orphaned and abused children.

Adding to this the 94.5 Kfm Cares initiative was recently launched on-air. Kfm Breakfast will be helping fellow Capetonians who find themselves in impossible situations by granting wishes every morning starting from Monday 6 July.

“We’re hoping to empower and help people who have found themselves in challenging situations through Kfm Cares,” said 94.5Kfm station manager, Ian Bredenkamp. “The initiative also allows our listeners to reach out to those less fortunate through us, as a station, and effect a change in the lives of those less fortunate.”

For more information on the Kfm Cares initiative and the Dis-chem Foundation Fund, log onto www.kfm.co.za, or www.dischem.co.za