Johannesburg, 25 Aug 2008
Earlier this month, leading managed telecommunications company, Huge Telecom, part of the Huge Group, contributed in excess of R100 000 to the non-profit organisation, Children in the Wilderness, a rural children's environmental and life skills programme for vulnerable children.
As part of its social responsibility commitment, Huge Telecom took 10 of its fittest staff members to participate as a corporate team in the annual Tour de Kruger charity mountain bike ride, held between the Northern Tuli Game Reserve in Botswana and the Pafuri camp in the Makuleke region of the Kruger National Park, in South Africa. The ride, an annual event, is the main source of income for the Children in the Wilderness development programme.
The money raised from the ride, which has been held annually since 2005, is channelled back into the communities through which the cyclists ride.
The Huge participation was initiated by CEO Anton Potgieter, who is a regular supporter of the ride and has ridden twice previously. He comments: "The Tour de Kruger ride is an awesome experience, and creates a fantastic camaraderie, and immense fun along with loads of sweat and effort, for the participants along the way. At the same time, we are generating money for charity with every pedal stroke - a real win-win situation!"
The Huge Telecom team was led by the Huge Group's marketing manager, Duncan Palmer, who reports: "The donations made in previous years were clearly visible to the riders. We could see the improvements in infrastructure in and around the villages as well as at the border posts as a result of previous fund-raising efforts by Children in the Wilderness. This made taking part all the more worthwhile. It was truly humbling to see the simplicity in which the locals live their lives, compared to life as we know it in the city - and it was wonderful to see the welcome that the locals gave us as we rode through. Particularly the incredible smiles we got from the kids... It left us feeling really good."
The ride was not all plain sailing and the Huge Telecom team had to contend with a number of unexpected situations, including the injury of one cyclist and some technical difficulties along the way. But all in all, it was a great experience with the team members pulling together to complete each day in high spirits, while cycling through the beautiful African bushveld in aid of a great cause.
Supercycling personality, Owen Hannie, who attended the event this year, rated it five out of five - and the Huge Team agrees. "We'll definitely be back next year!" assures Potgieter.
More information on Children in the Wilderness can be found at http://www.childreninthewilderness.com/tdk/beneficiaries.html.
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