Community fundraiser in Hoedspruit

Friday morning was splashed with colour, enterprise and dancing. Hoedspruit Spar’s “Proudly South African” weekend was ushered in with the national anthem, “Nkosi sikilcle’ iAfrica”, performed by Spar staff in traditional dress. In accordance with Heritage Day, Spar offered the opportunity to Hoedspruiters to assemble in a festive mood. A short program was staged, starting with further song and dance items by Spar staff. This was well received by the audience, who encouraged the performers to perform an encore.

Their performance was rounded off by the evergreen traditional Zulu song “Shoshalozs”, portraying Gauteng trains transporting mineworkers between their homelands and the mines. Imitating the train, they danced in single file back to their own “mine”, opening the stage to the next item.

Equally well received was the drum majorette squad of Drakensig Primary. They displayed their skill with batons soaring through he air and school colours flying.

The event was enhanced with food and trade stalls showing off the entrepreneurship of locals. The Voortrekkers made sure that their “chips” stall drew enough attention, setting up in a corrugated iron structure resembling a shack. Lumukisa Primary School from Aconhoek went to great effort using brightly coloured floral ornaments to attract patrons to their pap and wors stall.

The festive mood was extended to other tenants of the complex, joining the Spar in celebrating Heritage Day. The Spar and Hoedspruit Pharmacy staff were in traditional appare,l while Telenet staff preferred “Proudly South African” t-shirts, and Koos Coetzee decorated the entrance to the optometrist’s consulting rooms with a selection of rugby shirts.