Thanks to your incredible generosity, a record amount was raised for our charities this year. At the ultra marathon prize giving Solly Moeng, chairman of the Two Oceans Marathon Association, handed over cheques of R35 000 to the I Am Water Trust, R175 000 to SANParks and R35 000 to the SANParks Honorary Rangers.

South Africa has one of the most spectacular and diverse coastlines in the world, yet very few South Africans have access to it. The I Am Water Trust aims to introduce people to the ocean environment, while educating and raising awareness around important conservation issues. The Trust is committed to education and to sharing total ocean submersion with as many people as they can, and recently started a programme to teach people to swim.

As a result of this funding, the I Am Water Trust has started a programme to teach staff from Cape Town’s Solid Waste department who are responsible for cleaning our beaches, more about the ocean and the creatures that live there.

SANParks and the Honorary Rangers will use the funds to support some of Table Mountain National Park’s (TMNP) key environmental projects, one of which will be the planting of Silver Trees in the Cecelia Forest. The SANParks Honorary Rangers in the Table Mountain region comprises 35 volunteers who support TMNP by fundraising and working on a variety of conservation projects in the park.

The rangers raise funds and contribute time and expertise to SANParks on a voluntary basis. They also assist with environmental education for youngsters and play a role in the visitor safety programme through the TMNP Patrol Dog campaign. Other projects include trail and boardwalk maintenance, removal of alien invader plant species and indigenous tree planting.