Every year, Mandela Day arrives with a simple but profound challenge.
How will you spend your 67 minutes?
For many South Africans, the desire to make a difference is never the problem. The willingness exists. The compassion exists. The challenge is often finding a meaningful, organised, and practical way to transform goodwill into action that creates lasting impact.
This Mandela Day, one organisation is making that decision easier.
Ladles of Love is calling on companies, schools, families, students, and communities across South Africa to become “Hands-On Heroes” in support of 20,000 preschool children living in under-resourced communities.
The initiative offers something more than symbolic participation. It provides an opportunity for ordinary South Africans to contribute directly to the nutrition, education, and well-being of young children during the most important years of their development.
And in a country where millions of children continue to face challenges related to food security and access to educational resources, every minute spent helping has the potential to create a ripple effect that lasts far beyond Mandela Day itself.
Turning 67 Minutes Into Something Tangible
For more than a decade, Mandela Day has encouraged citizens to dedicate 67 minutes of service in honour of Nelson Mandela’s 67 years of public service.
Yet while the concept is universally embraced, many people still ask the same question each year: Where do I start?
Ladles of Love’s Hands-On Heroes initiative answers that question with a structured, practical, and highly organised volunteer experience designed to maximise impact.
This year’s flagship events will take place at two major venues:
- DHL Stadium in Cape Town on 17 July 2026
- Johannesburg EXPO Centre on 22 July 2026
Participants simply arrive, select an activity, and spend their time contributing to projects specifically designed to support preschool children and the communities around them.
According to Danny Diliberto, Founder of Ladles of Love, the goal is to ensure that every volunteer can clearly see the value of their contribution.
“Nelson Mandela reminded us that, ‘It is in your hands to create a better world for all our children.’ That line has real weight for us. We want people to feel that their 67 minutes are not symbolic only. They are making something useful. They are helping feed small children. They are supporting preschool learning. They are part of something practical, joyful and deeply needed.”
It is a philosophy that reflects Mandela’s own belief that meaningful change begins through action.
Four Ways to Make a Difference
To create a hands-on experience for volunteers, the events have been divided into four dedicated activation zones: Make, Create, Craft, and Grow.
Each zone focuses on a different aspect of supporting children’s nutrition, learning, and development.
The Make Zone
For those who enjoy direct action, the Make Zone features the energetic Sarmiethon challenge, where volunteers work together to prepare as many sandwiches as possible within 67 minutes for vulnerable individuals and communities.
Participants can also assemble nutrition boxes filled with pantry essentials selected from preschool grocery lists designed around children’s nutritional needs.
The Create Zone
Creativity becomes a tool for learning in the Create Zone.
Volunteers produce educational materials including preschool posters, flashcards, and activity workbooks that support early childhood learning and classroom engagement.
The Craft Zone
The Craft Zone focuses on hands-on educational resources.
Participants create teaching aids such as puppets, bean bags, and vegetable-themed learning tools that help bring lessons about language, movement, colour, and nutrition to life.
The Grow Zone
In the Grow Zone, volunteers help build grow boxes filled with vegetable and herb seeds.
These support urban farmers who supply fresh produce to preschools, strengthening both food security and local community sustainability.
Together, these activities transform volunteer time into practical resources that continue benefiting children long after the event concludes.
More Than Volunteering — A Shared National Movement
The Hands-On Heroes initiative has been carefully designed to accommodate both individuals and larger groups.
Four 90-minute sessions are scheduled throughout each event day at 09h00, 11h00, 13h00, and 15h00, making participation accessible for different schedules.
Corporate teams are also encouraged to participate as part of meaningful team-building experiences. Group bookings include options such as reserved seating, meal packages, branding opportunities, fast-track access, and motivational talks by Danny Diliberto.
Individual tickets are available for R300 and are considered donations that help provide a child with two healthy meals each day.
Discounted tickets for students and pensioners are available at R200.
Group and corporate packages are also available, with Section 18A tax certificates and CSI affidavits applicable to all qualifying bookings.
From One Soup Kitchen to a National Force for Good
The impact of Ladles of Love did not happen overnight.
What started in 2014 as a single soup kitchen in Cape Town has evolved into one of South Africa’s most respected hunger relief organisations.
Over the years, the organisation has developed programmes focused on providing nutritious meals and practical support to vulnerable children, families, and communities.
Its success has been built on a simple principle: turning compassion into action.
The Hands-On Heroes initiative reflects that same philosophy.
Rather than asking South Africans merely to care, it gives them a practical way to contribute to meaningful change.
Why These 67 Minutes Matter
Mandela Day has always been about more than charity.
It is about citizenship.
It is about recognising that positive change often begins with ordinary people choosing to do something extraordinary with a small amount of time.
This year, Ladles of Love is offering South Africans an opportunity to transform 67 minutes into meals, educational resources, learning opportunities, and hope for 20,000 preschool children.
For those children, the impact extends far beyond a single day.
It touches nutrition.
It supports education.
It strengthens communities.
And it helps create the foundations upon which future leaders can thrive.
Because when people show up with purpose, even 67 minutes can change lives.
