Jan Bijpost – Several prizes for GetOn Foundation at the Heroes Run 2013!

After four months of preparation, fundraising and training, the big day arrived on Sunday 9 June: the Heroes Run 2013 was being held in Amsterdam. In February GetOn hoped to raise €2.720 (± ZAR 27,200), enough to pay the Bake for Profit course for 8 students. Never did we expect to raise a total of €14.693 (± ZAR 146,930), enough for a Bake for Profit course for 43 students from the townships around Pretoria West. More than 430 Heroes ran for more than 40 different charities and raised a total amount of ± ZAR1,600,000.

It was the first time Dutch GetOn Foundation registered for the Heroes Run, which made it all the more special that GetOn did not only reach the 2nd place in “Charities which raised the most money”, (all the more considering the fact that GetOn had only 17 Heroes competing), but two of the GetOn Heroes ended up in the Top 3 of “Fundraisers who raised the most money”. It must be the good cause, because the better the cause, the more people want to donate. And with GetOn people know: 100% of their donations ends up at the GetOn Skills Development Centre.

And after months of secrecy, everyone could finally meet Mama Zininzi and her sister Mama Machupa. Under loud applause these two cheerful Township Ladies won a shared first prize in the costume competition. And what was maybe the biggest surprise of the day: Mama Machupa ran the 6.5 kms in about 30 minutes and that with all her “weight”.

And did you already figure out that Mr. Jan Bijpost was the person behind Mama Zininzi?