By Slovo Dyira
On Saturday, 29 April, a family fun day flea market was held at La Café to raise funds for the SPCA. Various business owners had stalls selling various goods at the charity event.
Event organizer, Angelea Gunkel, says that the Community Family Funday Flea Market is held every last Saturday of each month. The aim of the flea market is to help raise funds and get donations for various charity organizations in Makhanda. This month, the charity of choice was the SPCA.
Gunkel, alongside her family and various Makhanda business owners, used the “Help fill a Bakkie for the SPCA” theme, encouraging community members to donate animal food, cleaning products, or toys for the animals.
SPCA fundraising facilitator, Benita Tarr, said that while the bakkie is available for the day, they need a new one. “We are fundraising for different projects, and our biggest problem currently is the bakkie which has got just under 300 000 kilometres [it’s] an old bakkie, and we need to replace it and bring in more support [to help raise funds for a new one].”
Gunkel says that the community family flea market for charity idea came to her when she was walking in town with her son, and they saw children in need. Her son then asked, “Why don’t we help them?” That is when she knew that she had to do something to help the community of Makhanda, she said.
Grocott’s Mail asked Granny’s Ginger Beer owner Malwande Bebeza why he participated in the charity flea market. “I am a charity person myself; we do this every month, gathering with people from different people in Grahamstown to assist different organizations like today we met for the SPCA,” he said.
Khazini Sneakers owner, Aphelele “Percy” Ngemntu, said that the charity event is important and that the flea market was also a way to help market his business, especially since he is a student and needs funding for his studies. “I don’t want to bother my parents, and I also want to help them with the money I get,” he said.
Rcr Aquaponics owner Curt Roberts and Aquaponic farmer Mzikayise Nelani also had a stall at the flea market.
“I am actually quite connected to the animal community in Grahamstown. I do a lot of animal rescue and foster cats, and because of my knowledge of animals, I saw this as a healthy course. We have a great relationship anyway, so let me come get involved,” said Roberts when Grocott’s Mail asked about his involvement in the flea market.
Carl-Heinz Queisser, the owner of Charlie and Millie’s Doggie Basicut Treat and Merly Queisser, owner of Meryl’s Fayre Designer Jewlry, expressed the importance of charity.
Merly Queisser told Grocott’s Mail about the loss of their dog, which had cancer and the role vets and the SPCA played in their lives following the loss. She mentioned they could adopt another dog, which joyfully filled their hearts. “The SPCA does a great job, and we would [also]be happy to support any [other]charity,” she added.
“There is nothing more valuable than supporting the SPCA. They’re in desperate need of funding to care for stray and ill animals and serve our community,” Carl-Heinz added.
