The
First Unity
Flight Launches! Beaufort West
Dear Friend,
The inaugural UNITY FLIGHT OF SOUTH AFRICA of British
Pilot
Robert Vallier's Ufosa Foundation has started.
Robert journeyed (by scheduled commercial jet!) from
London to Johannesburg and collected the Cessna 182 he will fly in South
Africa on Saturday 29 September. He then flew the aircraft -
nicknamed Ufosa 1 -down to Cape Town
himself (about 800 miles/ 1,300 Km) ready for the first leg of the UNITY FLIGHT. A
press conference was held at the Table Bay Hotel (courtesy of their
management); and then at 9.30am on Monday 1 October, with the focus of TV,
radio and press, he was joined by MEC Minister Cameron Dugmore, and they
embarked on the first leg of the UNITY FLIGHT: Cape Town - Beaufort
West.
Robert Vallier with Minister Cameron
Dugmore (second from right) at the Beaufort West Secondary School.
Principal Mr Salamo Moses is outer right
with teaching
colleague outer left
Once in Beaufort West, the Minister and Robert visited the
first School to be welcomed into the Ufosa aid programme - the Beaufort
West Secondary School. The Minister was invited by Robert to present
to the School the symbolic First Book, personally selected by the Minister
('Soweto'), of the 1,000 book library which the Ufosa Foundation plans to provide to each of the 30
schools.
Robert Vallier with Minister Cameron
Dugmore (second left) who
presented the First Book to Beaufort
West School
Then Robert and Minister Dugmore moved
on to visit the Huis Johannes Old Age Home where they met some of the
residents. Both said a few words to the residents, with Robert's
also being translated into Afrikaans by the Minister.
Robert Vallier with a senior patient at
the Beaufort West Old Age Home, also
accepted into the Ufosa Programme
of aid
Then the Ufosa team were treated to a very special moment,
when staff and Johannes Head David Jooste joined together to sing a song
commemmorating the visit:
Huis Johannes staff and Manager David
Jooste (right) singing in commemmoration of the Ufosa visit
Meanwhile, the ground Support Team had arrived from Cape
Town in their personalised vehicle:
The Ufosa
Foundation's vehicle was provided by Niel
Langner, Regional Operations Manager (Southern Region) of General Motors
SA, via Reeds of Cape Town, and was negotiated by Ufosa fellow Trustee and
friend Des Read (no relation). The Ground Support Team is there at
selected venues to back up and supplement the Air Team. "This is
a great vehicle," said Robert, "and is already proving to be an
enormous help to us. We are thrilled to have had it made available
to us."
The
Ufosa Foundation's big fundraising event launched on 1
October and runs through to 30 October. Our National charity is reaching
out to 30 communities throughout South Africa, with a 5-year schedule to
bring help in Education, Family Wellbeing and Health.
Robert then said farewell to Minister Cameron Dugmore and
thanked him for his official support. "To have the formal
underpinning of the Government like this is invaluable," he
said. "We look forward to working alongside the Minister's
department over the coming many months."
Our website can be found at:
www.ufosafoundation.org.
Robert Vallier and the Ufosa
Foundation team then set off to visit Plettenburg Bay, with Port
Elizabeth, Middelburg and East London scheduled this week too.
More news on these very shortly.
Regards,
Admin
|
