advertisement
Facebook
X
LinkedIn
WhatsApp
Reddit

Hop onboard the online volunteer bus this weekend

“Make every day a Mandela Day”, that’s a slogan South Africans often hear on 18th July, when the entire country is urged to spend at least 67 minutes giving back to a good cause. But for Better SA, Mandela Day is all in a day’s work for them.

Better SA is a hop-on, hop-off bus service that lets anyone sign up to spend a bit of their time volunteering at a charity organisation over weekends.

The initiative was founded in September 2014 by Roberta Donovan who combined her passions for marketing and volunteering and a genuine desire to improve the lives of others.

Roberta Donovan
Roberta Donovan

Starting with understanding the barriers to volunteering, the idea was developed over the last few years and the elements came together to form Better SA, aiming to benefit not only the underprivileged, but NGO’s, volunteers and sponsors as well.

Anyone over the age of three can sign up on Better SA. To get involved with all activities, volunteers must log onto the Better SA website, find one of four hubs nearest to them, fill in their details to book their place on a bus and make their way to the hub on a Saturday before 9am.

7aa2e7_be7b67825bb74dd5b38d68142f7b848c.jpg_srb_p_960_540_75_22_0.50_1.20_0Around 90% of all Better SA activities are education or skills development based as the program aims to make a sustainable impact on those it helps.

“We look for organisations where volunteers can make an impact and have a pleasant and fulfilling experience,” says Donovan. “We also strive to form long lasting, fruitful relationships with our partner organisations and so look for partners with a shared vision and values. Some of our partner organisations are: Africa Children Feeding Scheme (in Alexandra and Soweto), Refilwe (opposite Lanseria airport), Park Care home for the elderly and disabled (in Parktown West) and the Green Beings environmental organisation.”

Using the internet is a critical component in the success of Better SA’s efforts. “80% of all our marketing efforts are done through our website and social media,” she says. “Digital mediums are critical to non-profits who do not have advertising budgets but need to spread the word about the services they offer.”

Speaking on budgets and money, Donovan says the program currently doesn’t receive any government support and is instead funded by several corporate companies. Better SA also generates funds through planning and facilitating employee volunteering programs for corporates and businesses.

“We do however need to secure more funding to optimise our Johannesburg operations and enable us to expand nationally. Every donation helps get one more Better SA bus on the road, or enables us to visit one more organisation in need (we currently have several organisations on a waiting list)” adds Donovan.

“The biggest challenges we face are securing funding and filling busses with volunteers. The response to Better SA to date has been overwhelmingly positive, however we still have empty seats on busses as not enough volunteers are booking each weekend. Our immediate focus is telling as many people as possible about the Better SA service and looking for media partners who can publicise upcoming volunteer events every week.”

Volunteers spend 90 minutes on various activities at the charities they go to. “In our experience, 90 mins is the ideal length of time for both volunteers and beneficiaries,” she explains.

However, if volunteers would like to do more for the organisation being visited, or spend more time helping them out, Better SA can help facilitate the building of that relationship.

“We walk away from these interactions knowing that our beneficiaries know more or can do more thanks to our assistance and this is very rewarding. Our hope is that South Africans are transformed by their volunteer experiences through Better SA and that once they learn how easy and rewarding the process is, that they become advocates for active citizenship and social change.”

“South Africa has never needed this movement more than it does now,” Donovan concludes.

advertisement

About Author

advertisement

Related News

advertisement