Beacon Bay Library has been chosen as the first recipient in the Eastern Cape to benefit from the Nestlé Bar One Light Up Libraries #needenergy campaign.
The establishment has received energy to assist with operations during load-shedding. As a bonus, Vumatel Fibre has sponsored free uncapped internet access for the 10 computers to allow the community to have access to internet services.
The library has received solar panels and a backup generator worth R400,000.
Library branch manager Viwe Mgushelo said this opportunity seemed too good to be true at first, but she is glad she followed up when she did.
“It all started when I received an email about all of this.
“I was very unsure at first because there are many scams out there. But they were not asking for any personal or financial details, so I responded to the email, and they replied within an hour.
“I made it clear to them that if they will be helping us, it will have to be a 100% donation because we have nothing to give them in return. I am so happy that they have stayed true to their word.”
According to Mgushelo, many children were walking from Nompumelelo to use the library’s facilities to do their homework and assignments, and the electricity interruptions were affecting them badly.
“I used to get so frustrated about these children sometimes.
“They walk 45 minutes to get information for their school projects but then they get here and there’s load-shedding.
“The lack of electricity affects them negatively. We have also had a growing number of university students who come here to study,” Mgushelo said.
Bar One brand manager Nontando Khubisa said this venture was the beginning of good things for the community of Beacon Bay and they were excited to do more for others.
“At Bar One, we believe that a library isn’t just a collection of books but also a beacon of hope. It took about seven weeks to get this project to where it is.
“We have created a permanent solution that will attract more people to the library. This is a shared value between us and the library and we had the same vision. With the social media campaign, the best content creator came from Beacon Bay,” Khubisa said.
Vumatel Fibre got involved by providing internet equipment and connectivity and have pledged R22,000 worth of internet access for the library.
“We are proud to be a part of this initiative. We will be sponsoring free internet and Wi-Fi. It will be a 1GB fibre line.
“We hope to have the internet installed and up and running by the end of August.
“This is our way of engaging with the community and uplifting them by providing the necessary support,” August said.
