Hollywoodbets and Mike Procter continue giving back to communities in Durban with 300 more food parcels donated.

The Zwelisha and Amaotana communities have received relief once again during the COVID-19 pandemic, as the Mike Procter Foundation, together with Hollywoodbets, donated an additional 300 food parcels to the community on Friday 15th May 2020. The distribution was done via Ottawa Primary School in Phoenix.
In April the foundation had donated 150 food parcels to vulnerable families of the learners at Ottawa Primary School but they felt the need to return again, this time with double the amount of donations, adding up to over four tonnes of groceries.
267 food parcels were distributed on the day, with 33 being reserved for children whose families had not received any assistance yet during this lockdown period. These will be distributed when school returns in the coming weeks.

Hollywoodbets is all about giving back to our communities, and we are currently running the Brighter Future Project in collaboration with Nomzamo Mbatha’s Lighthouse Foundation. This project will see R1 million in aid going to 60 NPOs and NGOs across all nine South African provinces.”

600 face masks supplied by Hollywoodbets were also distributed on the day, adding another layer of protection for community members during this period where we are all being asked to adhere to these strict safety measures.
“We have received unbelievable support since the first drop, with donations coming from the UK, USA, and other areas of South Africa. It just shows how much goodwill is out there,” said Mike Procter, the former South African cricket legend and Hollywoodbets Brand Ambassador.
“We started on Thursday afternoon at Eastmans SPAR with three Hollywoodbets trucks loaded with four tonnes of food, which was transported early on Friday morning to Ottawa Primary School. The staff from the school, Team Members from Hollywoodbets, and some of our benefactors were on hand to make sure that the parcels were packaged on site and distributed in an orderly manner, while maintaining social distancing practises. It was really an amazing effort, and great to see the dedication and commitment by the people when it comes to giving back to the community,” said Procter.
Thokozile Msane, the principal of Ottawa Primary School was happy to see these do-gooders back for a second visit.
“We all know that COVID-19 has affected each and every one of us in one way or another. It has indeed hit the communities of Zwelisha and Amaotana, which are informal settlements, hard. We draw our learners from these communities, and for most of them whose parents are unemployed, the one decent meal they receive is the one provided by the Department of Education during school time. During this lockdown period where there is no schooling, it is most difficult for these families to feed their children while they are at home,” said Msane.
“On behalf of Ottawa Primary School I would like to pass on our sincere gratitude to the Mike Procter Foundation, Hollywoodbets, and the entire team that worked on this food parcel initiative. This is the second time they have donated food parcels to our community in the past two months. They have made sure that the children from the most severely-affected families don’t go hungry whilst they are not at school.”
Devin Heffer, Brand and Communications Manager for Hollywoodbets, was honoured to be involved with this collaborative effort once again.
“We are proud to have Mike Procter as one of our brand ambassadors, and he has shown that his goodwill goes beyond the boundary ropes. Being able to return to Ottawa Primary School again to support their surrounding community was an overwhelmingly positive experience. Hollywoodbets is all about giving back to our communities, and we are currently running the Brighter Future Project in collaboration with Nomzamo Mbatha’s Lighthouse Foundation. This project will see R1 million in aid going to 60 NPOs and NGOs across all nine South African provinces during this COVID-19 pandemic. We are passionate about playing our part at this time as well as grateful to be able to do so,” said Heffer.