Keith Blake, Ottery
In the beginning the Ottery Boyz MCC and businesses and bikers and friends opened their purses to buy many boxes of marshmallow Easter eggs and donated items needed to make 16 baths of pickled fish.
On Good Friday, fellow bikers and the Ottery Boyz MCC met at my home in Ottery and here I opened in prayer and thanked God for making the event possible and to bless us and the residents we were going to visit on our route.
My neighbours Donavan and his wife Lameze set up a table on their lawn so bikers and friends could enjoy hot coffee and fresh doughnuts before the convoy could begin. The bikers then passed a helmet around and a huge amount of money was donated to buy more boxes of Easter eggs.
The convoy with the bikers and bakkies filled with the pickled fish and Easter eggs and bread then went on to serve it to residents of Ottery with councillor William Akim at Sasol Garage, and also to residents of Hanover Park at Lansdowne Corner Shopping Mall.
The convoy then went to Oribi Street, Lotus River, where the residents under the leadership of pastor Paul Phillips and his wife Mary were also served pickled fish and Easter eggs and the children given toys.
Here, while busy donating, the bikers became aware of senior residents in an old age home called House Morea and they then went from room to room and served the seniors pickled fish and Easters eggs and this is where I got a lump in my throat to see this act of kindness.
The convoy then went to Jabulani Centre in Dove Street, Parkwood, and here the residents under the leadership of Ms Abrahams were also served pickled fish and Easter eggs and the children given toys.
The convoy then moved to a park in Applemist Road, Ottery Gardens, and here the residents of Freedom Park informal settlement were also served pickled fish and Easter eggs.
Noting that there was still pickled fish left we then went to Beethoven Street, Retreat, where at the home of Theresa Jones the residents were also served pickled fish, Easter eggs and the children given the last of the toys. The convoy then went to an informal settlement called Kampies, right opposite the Philippi police station and here the last of the pickled fish and the Easter eggs were donated to the residents. At all the above mentioned stops and sites, hundreds of the poor were served with pickled fish and Easter eggs and the comments of appreciation, the thanks and the blessings for what was done by the bikers and friends is still ringing in my ears and yes, Facebook is a testimony of this great event that was done with love for our neighbours, our brothers and sisters who are less fortunate.
