Out shines at 2007 firstrand volunteers awards

On the 7th of November 2007 the FirstRand Banking Group honoured their volunteers in the first Chairman's Volunteer Recognition Awards Programme. 

The FirstRand Volunteers Programme was established in 2003 as a catalyst in breaking down perceived barriers to volunteering. The programme also pledged to commit sufficient resources to make it as easy as possible for every staff member to contribute to needy communities. 

Prizes included income-generation tools and materials, as well as funds to donate to the winner's favourite charity organisation. Every winner also received a handcrafted tapestry created by the women from the Mapula Needlework Group in the Winterveld - an income generation programme. 

This year's inaugural awards programme, held at the FNB Training Centre in Sandown, recognised the individuals, co-ordinators and teams who have worked so hard to set new standards in corporate social investment and community giving. More than 54 entries were received from across the FirstRand group. OUTsurance Insurance entered 2 categories: 

- The team award for the Helping SA OUT campaigns.
- The individual award for Jillian Watson's SPCA project. 

OUTsurance made the shortlist for the Team awards with Jason Ellis's team's eye testing project, who went out of their way to ensure that a group of underprivileged children from Cato Ridge near Durban received free eye tests and subsequent treatment, and Latifah Phokane's team's Mamelodi SAPS childcare centre revamp project, whose mission was to create a safe haven for the kids of Mamelodi should they have a crime to report to the SAPS. 

The Mamelodi project was a runner up and Latifah accepted the award on behalf of her team. A huge thanks to the FirstRand Volunteers as well as all those involved in the Helping SA OUT projects.