Songkran, the Thai New Year, is a celebration of new beginnings and goodwill towards others. Simply Asia, South Africa’s favourite Thai food and noodle bar, is continuing this tradition here in South Africa, and have partnered with The Lunchbox Fund to feed hungry children across our rainbow nation.
“Celebrated from the 13th to the 15thof April this year, Songkran originally took place as a solemn remembrance of the year past, complete with water to wash away the sins of the prior year; it has changed just a little bit in the intervening years. In true Thai fashion, this has become nothing short of one of the biggest parties of the year,” explains Liane Wadman, National Marketing Manager for Simply Asia.
“This year we have partnered with The Lunchbox Fund and will be running a Songkran Special. Customers are encouraged to sit-down at their nearest Simply Asia branch from Mondays to Wednesdays from 13th April until 13th May, order their favourite noodle dish and receive a second noodle dish absolutely free. And in the Songkran spirit of giving, for every Songkran Special sold, we’ll donate R2.50 (which is the cost of one hot meal for a child) to The Lunchbox Fund.”
The Lunchbox Fund is a NGO that focuses on fostering education through nutrition by providing a daily meal for orphaned and vulnerable school children in townships and rural areas of South Africa. Their belief is that when you feed a child, you nourish their mind.
“56% of all children in SA live in poverty – that’s 12 million children living below the poverty line, with over 3.6 million orphans among them. The Government currently reaches 8 of those 12 million children through the National School Nutrition Program. This is often the child’s only meal of the day,” explains Sue Wildish from The Lunchbox Fund. “We aim to feed the 4-million who are not reached. Children, who don’t have enough to eat, don’t have the capacity to work towards a proper education. We provide a free and healthy meal at schools, which in turn encourages children to stay in school – putting them in the right place for an education. And from there – for a future. Through daily interaction with teachers, peers and their food preparers – the child is nurtured in other ways too – they become connected, cared for and involved.”
R2,50 is all that it costs for The Lunchbox Fund to provide a hot meal for a child each school day, and costs a mere R500 to feed a child for a full school year. The Lunchbox Fund provides a monthly “rotating menu” of nutritionally fortified foods that are delicious and familiar to the children and provide the required RDA of vitamins, minerals and microbutrients. Ingredients can be prepared in different combinations and include: soya mince in three flavours, soup mixes, peanut butter, milk, porridge, immunomeal, samp and sugar beans, rice and lentils. The school is required to source vegetables from within the community, and where peanut butter is supplied, to provide wholewheat bread with which to make sandwiches.
So make sure you visit your local Simply Asia store from Mondays to Wednesdays between the 13th of April and the 13th of May 2015 to use your noodle and feed a hungry child in South Africa, because one good feed deserves another.
Terms and conditions apply:
Buy any two Noodle dishes and receive the cheaper one free. Sit-down orders will receive the cheaper of the two dishes for free; take-away orders will receive 25% off the cheaper of the two dishes.