Techtron Cape Argus Cycle Tour Team Fund Raising Initiative

Purpose:

Techtron staff has bravely signed up to ride the 110km cycle tour taking place on the 13th March 2010. The initial goal of each member of the team was to finish the tour within the cut off time. Subsequently we have been asked to help in a worthwhile initiative to assist in raising funds for the GCU programme (details below) so we can assist in taking 15 of their students and the volunteers for a hike up table mountain, lunch at the top of the mountain followed by a ride down the mountain on the cable. This will be the first time these youths have ever had this experience.

As a result we ask you, our dear family, friends, clients and suppliers to sponsor our riders for every km they manage to ride (and even the one’s they may not complete if you so choose).

All funds raised will go directly to the costs involved to the Table Mountain experience and any surplus will be donated to the GCU programme to help fund their other initiatives.

Beneficiary:

GCU was set up in 2001 by Mario van Neikerk. Born and bred in Heideveld, Mario had witnessed many of the community’s problems first hand and felt passionate about helping many of the area’s youth and keeping them off the streets. Hence the Soccer Academy was born, providing around 250 boys from the area with a place to go and something to do after school. The boys meet after school each day for practice, and compete with other local teams on Saturdays. GCU aims to provide each boy with a soccer kit, boots, food, and transport to and from the playing fields. The uniforms are particularly important in providing children with a sense of identity, pride, purpose and belonging, and are a powerful alternative to the colours and insignia associated with gangs. The soccer jerseys replace gang uniforms and serve as a strong social motivator for club members.

GCU has since expanded into a wider range of community activities in addition to football to enhance the lives of these young people, such as:

• Food security and nutrition for children and youth: GCU supports breakfast as well as lunch at 4 primary schools in the community, with a student population of around 3000. GCU helps educate youth and parents about nutrition and food security.
• Life Skills Training: There are approximately 5,000 gang members in the community and most use crystal methamphetamine (“ice”) and other illegal drugs. Life skills training encourages health-protecting behaviours, goal setting, self-management skills, self-improvement/self esteem building and problem solving. The workshops and educational camps are designed to help children deal with life skills training as well as focusing on social issues such as HIV and alcohol and other drugs.
• Education: With 40-50 children in each classroom, teachers don’t have the resources to provide the best education. GCU is initiating a community tutoring program for after school and aims to employ additional teachers to assist students. Tutoring will be a part of GCU’s requirement to participate in sports practices, so if the child does not attend tutoring, they cannot participate in soccer.
• Sports for youth development: this is still the primary attraction for children for GCU and away from the alternatives of gangs and drugs.

Rider Profiles:

As you may have noticed all of the riders are fairly inexperienced cyclists and none of them have ever completed the full distance of the ride before. As such we need to secure as many donations as possible in order to motivate the riders. However, we are realistic that the initial goal of completing the race may not be achieved by all riders and we therefore ask you to either sponsor per kilometre completed or commit an amount in advance regardless of the kilometres achieved.

We would of course like to update you after the race on the accomplishments of our riding team and the amount of money raised to fund this worthwhile project, so please provide your email address.

The Techtron team thanks you for your support!

To offer sponsor a rider pleas email info@techtron.co.za