Siya and Rachel Kolisi are collecting and distributing 1,000 blankets: here's how you can help

To help keep SA warm this winter, the Kolisi Foundation is pleading with South Africans to donate blankets for the less fortunate. 

The foundation, founded by Springbok captain Siya Kolisi and his wife Rachel, launched a nationwide blanket drive with the aim to collect and distribute at least 1,000 blankets across the country. 

The drive is in partnership with self-storage company, Stor-Age, and runs until May 19. 

Speaking on Cape Talk on Tuesday, Rachel said they will be collecting the blankets at 51 drop-off points. 

“The majority of South Africans always want to help and they always want to play their part and give back what they can. Through the partnership with Stor-Age, we are going to be collecting blankets, either new or second-hand,” she said. 

“We've all got a spare blanket somewhere that we can give away and it really doesn't take much to have a look around and see the state of what some South Africans have to go through during winter.”

According to Stor-Age, those who make donations will get a reward too. “Not only will you make a difference to someone this winter, but as a thank you, we’ll give you a month of free self-storage,” said the company.

Last month, the Kolisi Foundation celebrated a year since it had been established during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Through the foundation, the pair have been lending a hand to those in need and affected the most by the pandemic. Some of its previous charity initiatives include donated food and PPEs around the country, including at Siya's birthplace, Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth), and Cape Town.

In October, the Kolisi Foundation started a crowdfunding campaign to support a teenager, Bryan Diamond, who was left paralysed by gang violence in the Cape Flats in 2006. 

Diamond was paralysed at the age of three after a stray bullet from a gang shoot-out struck him in the head.

The Kolisi Foundation donated close to R40,000 to help improve the lives of the teenager and his family.