That’s the essence of the Hot Cares Christmas and what it means to both the worthy recipients and listeners, but also the staff at Hot 102.7FM.
The Johannesburg radio station through Hot Cares have once again changed some lives this festive season, as part of the Hot Cares Christmas that is providing some much-needed relief to those who have fallen on hard times.
“Thanks to the generosity of the Hot 102.7FM audience, we raised R8.9m at our recent annual Teddython fundraiser, and this gives us the means to grant these wishes this festive season,” says Carmen Rocha, managing director of Hot Cares. “We’ve been blown away by the response and it’s just incredibly rewarding to be in a position to help just a few people and make it a Christmas to remember for them.”
Hot 102.7FM put the word out some weeks back, calling for nominations for individuals who could do with some Christmas cheer and the response was overwhelming, with Hot Cares receiving over a thousand emails with stories of individuals who needed a helping hand.
That’s from a mother and daughter living on the streets to a nearly-blind pensioner who needed a cataract operation, an emphysema sufferer in desperate need of an invertor to combat loadshedding, a brain-damaged youngster looking for a treadmill for rehabilitation, an injured single mother unable to work, a child with Cerebal Palsy who needed a hoist, a PhD student out of funds, an autistic boy who just wants to go to school, and a bereaved pensioner desperate to live with her family.
These were among the worthy recipients, ensuring they go into Christmas with a bit more love and happiness in their hearts.
“As a radio station, we believe in using the platform we have to do as much good as possible, and the Hot Cares Christmas is a great example of this,” says Lloyd Madurai, managing director of Hot 102.7FM. “It’s also provided an opportunity to involve our presenters in the good work that Hot Cares does, and it’s led to some incredible on-air moments, whilst our listener feedback has been moving, to say the least, with plenty of voice notes reaching us, of people crying in their cars.”
Hot Cares is a registered non-profit company, with Public Benefit Organisation status, and strives to make a meaningful difference to the lives of those around it. Over the past few years, it has dedicated its efforts to providing much-needed assistance to those who find themselves in difficult circumstances, with a focus on four key areas: humanitarian and welfare, medical, educational, and animal welfare.
The Hot Cares Christmas is just one of its initiatives and runs for two weeks, between the 28 November and 9 December 2022.
