A prizefund-raising campaign has just been launched, celebrity and charity competitors will be announced on 28th October 2003, and on Valentines Day, 14th February 2004, at least 16 top South African celebrities and their benefiting charities will vie for the largest portion of a R1m plus pool of prize money by participating in an all-tar regularity/gymkhana competitive motoring event at Pick 'n Pay hypermarkets throughout Gauteng.
For the public the event promises to be a fun-filled day of non-stop driving action where they will be able to watch and even meet their favourite sport or entertainment super stars being put through their paces in a hugely entertaining driving spectacle.
A number of deserving local charities have already applied for participation and more are being urged to do so from this month. A prospectus setting out just what charities need to do to participate - and how they should go about finding a supporting celebrity - is now available from the SAGMJ offices in Rosebank, telephone (011) 880 0224. A copy of the prospectus has also been posted on the Guild's website www.sagmj.co.za.
The "Drive for Charity" event has already attracted strong endorsement from WesBank, the Wheels Bank, and Pick 'n Pay Hypermarkets, who have all committed funds to cover the costs of running the project. The National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of SA (NAAMSA) and the Retail Motor Industry (RMI) have also come on board with official support. Representatives from these bodies have agreed to join and serve with other members on the board of a Section 21 company being formed by WesBank and SAGMJ to administrate the charity prize fund.
The cars to be used in the event will be those chosen by the Guild of Motoring Journalists as finalists for their 2004 Car of the Year (COTY) event, and loaned to Drive for Charity immediately after the COTY Test days at the end of January 2004.
The organisers dynamic fund-raising programme has commenced and is set to achieve the targeted R1 million minimum for the prize fund. Sponsorships are being offered on the cars themselves, on the participating celebrities and at the sites of the nine different driving tests which will take place. While the first event it is being held only in Gauteng this year, the annual Drive for Charity may well broaden into a national event where simultaneous celebrity charity drives will be held around the country in the future.
Says Guild spokesman and event organiser Dave Clapham: "There are more than 100 000 charities registered to raise funds in South Africa. While many have these have benefited from the proceeds of the national lottery, many are still struggling to properly fund their activities. We see the "Drive for Charity" event as one way the motor industry and corporate business in South Africa, as well as the motoring public at large, can make its contribution to alleviating the plight of the less fortunate among us."
All participating charities are guaranteed a share of the prize pool - depending on how well their particular celebrity fares against the other competing celebrities in the driving events. Donations to the participating charities will range from around R300 000 for first prize to R10 000 for last.
Entries of celebrities and charities into the "Drive for Charity" event close on 10th October this year. The organisers will then choose a list of the "Top Twenty" charities based on the combined appeal of their chosen celebrity, the individual charity concerned and the manner in which the prize money will be used. The final competitors (the celebrities and the charities) for the Drive for Charity shootout next February will be made known at the daytime announcement of the 2004 Car of the Year finalists at WesBank Raceway on October 28th.
