It is in YOUR Hands
Mandela Day 2024
We have adopted the Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) Marine Unit as the recipients for our 2024 Mandela Day efforts.
The TMNP Marine Protected Area (MPA) is 1 000 km² of ocean and coastline. This MPA stretches from Mouille Point Lighthouse in Table Bay to Bailey’s Cottage near Muizenberg Beach in False Bay and includes a diverse array of marine habitats. Cape Point, the Great African Sea Forest, Boulders African penguin colony, a west coast rock lobster sanctuary and Duiker Island Cape fur seal colony fall within the boundaries of this incredibly biodiverse, protected refuge. There are six no-take zones within this controlled area and the TMNP Marine Unit are mandated to protect the entirety of this MPA along with the Robben Island MPA (an additional 680 km²) in Table Bay. These two MPAs are faced with illegal fishing and illegal overharvesting of west coast rock lobster and abalone making the Unit essential for conservation.
As part of the Mandela Day event, a group of local artists will be painting a mural of the TMNP MPA across the walls of the car park at their offices in Kommetjie. This mural will act as an educational tool for the Rangers to utilise when running their education programmes for local schools and community groups. On this site, we will also be transforming an ordinary room and backyard into a calm space for Marine Rangers to decompress between patrols and operations. This transformation will include painting the room and making it more welcoming through the addition of a carpet, a couch, curtains, cushions, books, and games. The backyard will have the current concrete slab extended, the fence fixed, a braai and prep table built and an ecobrick bench erected. We will also include planter boxes filled with indigenous species to brighten up and soften the view from the renovated breakroom.
Materials List:
MPA Mural
- Outdoor paint – White, black, red, yellow, blue – 4x 5 litre tins for each colour
- 6x Paint trays and turpentine
Field Ranger Breakroom
- Indoor paint – Blue, white – 1x 5 litre tin for each colour
- Curtains, carpet and cushions
Back Courtyard
- Planter boxes, potting soil, compost and indigenous plants
- Cement slab
- 15x stone
- 14x sand
- 7x cement
- Ecobrick bench
- 5x stone
- 15x sand
- 7x cement
- 15x 800 rebar
- 100x50x1.8 m welder’s mesh
- 4 m chicken wire
- 1 pack of cable ties
- Braai and prep table
- 360 bricks
- 3x 2.1 m lintels
- 3x 1.2 m lintels
- 12x sand
- 2x cement
Mandela Day 2023
ARKYS Outreach joined Guardians of the Deep and a number of dedicated people from the Cape Peninsula communities coming together to assist the staff and children of Green Curtains EduCare in Ocean View. Despite the rain, we managed to plant a food garden, paint murals on classroom doors, sew mattress covers and forge new relationships over some delicious food and warm beverages.
The support of these individuals, who gave selflessly of their time, enabled us to spend the day spoiling the deserving children and their dedicated teachers, whilst reflecting on Nelson Mandela’s legacy and continuing to strive for a compassionate connection between our local communities through social welfare and connection.
A huge thank you to:
~ The Orrie Family for all of the beautiful fabric donated towards making the 32 mattress covers
~ Ovenbaked in Fish Hoek for their generous discount on their delicious pizza, which enabled us to provide fuel for the hard-working volunteers and EduCare staff
~ Simon’s Town Museum for donating their time and creativity by painting a Richard Scarry-inspired door mural
~ Food Lovers Market Long Beach Mall for donating R2000 to the cooking efforts of Mutheera’s Projects and for spoiling the Green Curtains EduCare team
~ Cape Dutch Gardens for donating plants and fertiliser to the food garden
~ Peninsula Business Solutions for donating the paint, paint equipment, pizzas, a laminator, a spade and a rake
~ Mica Hardware for the discount given on the paint and paint equipment
~ Lucy and Jane from Sitting Duck Studios for their gorgeous Serengeti door mural
~ Maryann for donating compost, bonemeal and spinach
~ Mervin and Maryann for transforming an empty, weed-tangled plot of land in to a beautiful garden
~ Mutheera Fortune and the Forever Young Senior’s Club for cooking lunch for the Green Curtains EduCare children and for donating chips and lollipops
2023 Gallery
“It always seems impossible until it’s done” ~ Nelson Mandela