Champion fundraiser for the poor: iLIVE

Yvonne Eskell Klagsbrun knows how to make money - by getting others to dig deep into their pockets.

Despite losing her job as a fundraiser for a charity last year, the mother-of-three today continues to give her time to worthy causes.

Klagsbrun is one of 10 volunteers participating in the Vodacom Change the World campaign, run in conjunction with the parent company of the Sunday Times, Avusa.

And Klagsbrun is continuing to do what she does best - she is teaching staff at the Waterberg Welfare Society in northern Limpopo to raise money for the variety of life-changing initiatives the organisation runs.

Based on the outskirts of Lesedi township in Vaalwater , the organisation provides multi-faceted support and assistance to families affected by HIV and Aids.

"I used to pass this little organisation while doing other projects in Limpopo and I always wished I could do something with them," said Klagsbrun. ''It is unbelievable what they are doing there. What I saw from the road before is nothing like what it was when I got there."

The welfare organisation runs a hospice, a crèche for vulnerable children and orphans as well as an after school youth centre.

Founded 11 years ago, it employs 50 people. One of them, finance officer Pinkie Ditsela, joined them in 2003. She is being groomed by Klagsbrun in the art of fundraising.

The organisation specifically asked Vodacom for someone to help show them how to effectively raise funds on a consistent basis.

After an initial course, Ditsela said she now had a better sense of how to put together funding proposals, how to monitor and evaluate donor funds as well as tackling ethical dilemmas that such organisations may face.

'"I have to be honest, Yvonne has given us confidence to go out there and raise funds," added Ditsela.

She said Klagsbrun, who joined in April, taught them how to arrange site visits for prospective donors and to provide them with information about the organisation's various programmes.

Klagsbrun is also in the process of applying for a broadcast licence so the youth in the area can start a community radio station.

The Independent Communication Authority of South Africa (Icasa) has already done a site visit and, if secured, the station will be used to broadcast messages about HIV and Aids to the community via talk shows and entertainment programmes.

Klagsbrun said she and the team had secured funding for equipment and training of the youth who would be running the station, tentatively called Waterberg Waves.

She said the fact that all her children were grown up and married enabled her to "make a difference in the lives of others".

'"Some people say why don't you go and work for a big company and make a lot of money. I enjoy what I do, I don't need a lot of money."