Charity Cyclists in Aberdeen

Aberdeen recently played host to a group of cyclists from Stellenbosch. These six energetic people are covering a journey of 1780 kilometres in 20 days, from a wine farm in Stellenbosch to Pietermaritzburg, to raise funds for arthritis and cancer sufferers. The project, named "home2home", was initiated by teacher Dieter Lutge. He has been inspired to raise awareness of rheumatoid arthritis by the experiences of his mother, who has suffered from this crippling disease for several years. Like most of us, he also has several family members affected by cancer.
The cyclists and their support team arrived in Aberdeen on Thursday evening, after a gruelling ride from Willowmore. With over 600km covered in six days they were more than ready for their first rest day, and enjoyed the tranquillity and history of our beautiful town. Jean Watermeyer from the publicity office organised various visits for them, including a fascinating tour by David Millar of the well-known church panels.

A necessary stop for one of the team was Pep Stores for a hot water bottle! Karoo meat from the local butcher proved to be a firm favourite as the group were able to enjoy the luxury of a braai on their day off. Many local residents were keen to stop and talk with the visitors, who handed out magazines and leaflets about arthritis. The group were fascinated to discover that Professor Orlando Meyers, who started chatting to one of the group, is a past chairman of the Arthritis Foundation of South Africa! To date, the impressive amount of R40 000.00 has been raised for the Arthritis Foundation and Helping Hands. The group were unanimous in their commitment to these causes - and also seemed to be having a great deal of fun along the way!
Here is an extract from Dieter’s log from day 7 of their trip:
The significance of this Road Trip is highlighted by certain experiences – An arthritic lady from Outdshoorn, whose husband wanted to purchase her a bike, but could not because her arthritic hands could not close over the brake. The significance of this tale rang true when the previous day the two girls experienced the same condition but not from arthritis but the freezing conditions.

What motivates a person to take part in such a grueling trek? Dave Wilkinson, at 42 the oldest member of the group, is a farm manager in KwaZulu-Natal.
“I have always wanted to do a ride like this and when I got the opportunity to do it and at the same time achieve something for a good cause I could not turn down the offer. A ride like this for regular folk like us will definitely be a challenge and we will at times be out of our comfort zones, but our discomfort can not compare to that experienced by arthritis/cancer patients. I am honoured to be able to be out of my comfort zone so that I can make a difference for those affected by arthritis/cancer”
More about the group can be found on their website www.home2home.co.za, and anyone wishing to make a donation to this very worthy cause can find details there.

Article By: Peter Shaw

Auction in Aberdeen

A delightful property in Grey Street, Aberdeen came under the auctioneer’s hammer recently.
The house belonged to Mrs Joe Coetzee, who at the grand old age of 93 has decided that it is time to move into Aalwynhof Old Age Home.
A spritely Mrs Coetzee was at the house to welcome many interested potential buyers, who were unanimously impressed by this neat and obviously well-loved home. Mrs Coetzee had moved here from Villeria on the death of her husband and was obviously sad to leave, whilst looking forward to a new chapter of her life at Aalwynhof.

The auctioneer, Duncan McLaggan of Port Elizabeth, read out the conditions of sale before opening the floor to bidding. After a slow start, the competition started in earnest with the house eventually being sold to a local man for R210 000.00.

Article By: Peter Shaw

Cemetery Walkabout

A chilly morning did not deter the enthusiastic members of Aberdeen Publicity and Tourism on their monthly walkabout last week. Eleven ladies braved the cold and were most interested to explore the Aberdeen Cemetery, both the Christian and Jewish sections. The majority of the graves have been well maintained, with some very impressive headstones.
The grave of Jan Vorster, the original owner of the farm Brakfontein on which Aberdeen was founded, was the first stopping point for the group. This grave has been lovingly restored by the late Jan van Heerden, and is of great interest to many visitors to the town.

A large tree had been uprooted in the March storm, but fortunately the trunk fell between two graves, and no damage was caused to the headstones. A few centimetres either side could have destroyed an irreplaceable monument. The wording on this unusual memorial is a touching tribute erected by E. Steinhobel and children to C.M. Steinhobel, who died at age 52 in 1916.
“A darling wife, a dear mother
To know her was to love her
To remember her revives sweet memories”
Interestingly, Steinhobel was the architect who designed many of the grand houses in Aberdeen, including De Denne, now Karoo Moons guest house.
One of the members sparked a treasure hunt of sorts, having seen on a previous visit a headstone commemorating a man who had been born in Aberdeen, Scotland, and died in Aberdeen South Africa. Unfortunately no one was able to find the grave, but the interest of many was piqued, with promises to return to find the headstone concerned!
The walkabout concluded with a very welcome pit stop at the Kamdeboo Padstal, where a beautifully set table awaited the group.

Article By: Peter Shaw