NEWS & VIEWS

Steenberg Community Policing Forum chairperson Gavin Walbrugh awarded the ballerinas of the Guardians of the National Treasure (GNT) Dance School with the CAFDA-Spirit Award on Human Rights Day March 21 March. The event was at Blode Street in Lavender Hill. (People's Post)

Following the death of a Hillview resident who was loved by the community for his great deeds, residents decided to come together and play ball games in memory of him and all others that have died due to gang violence and crimes in their area. The community memorial soccer and netball sports day was organised by the Guardians of the National Treasure (GNT), a non-profit organisation in Lavender Hill. (People's Post)

Lavender Hill FC’s u.7 team returned from Rygersdal’s five-a-side tournament with their heads held high. The team finished as runners-up in the division, but it was not the finishing position which made chests burst with pride, but rather the way in which the team represented their community and enjoyed the experience­. (People's Post)

Lavender Hill FC’s under-seven team took part in the 20th annual Rygersdal junior five-a-side tournament at Canal Walk over the weekend. The team fared well and were runners-up in the tournament. Ralph Bouwer, representing Lavender Hill FC and the NPO Guardians of the National Treasure, said it was a proud moment for the club and encouraged people to support Lavender Hill sport teams. (Southern Mail)

The impact you make on society is not dependent on your age or capabilities. Ralph Bouwers, was selected as a hero of the Lavender Hill community and has been helping youth overcome their odds through sporting initiatives. (Cape Argus)

Hundreds of residents, community leaders and other stakeholders had the opportunity to ask pertinent questions relating to policing at an imbizo held in a marquee on the notorious field in Lavender Hill’s Depsiton Crescent, known for gang shootouts, on Friday May 25. (Southern Mail)

Cape Town - Lavender Hill kids have a guardian angel who wants to see them flourish.

An optician and hypnotherapist, who formed a youth organisation in the area to keep children off the streets, is now teaching girls how to play netball. (Cape Argus)

On Sunday hundreds of Lavender Hill residents came together to celebrate the Beautiful Game in a community-building event. The Lavender Hill Football Club took on members of the police’s Mitchells Plain and Wynberg Cluster in a 5-2 thriller. (Daily Voice)

A Lavender Hill resident says home is always where the heart is, and that is why he has returned to his home country to help his community where he can. (People's Post)

Lavender Hill was abuzz on Monday as 100 boys received a free haircut ahead of school opening on Wednesday. Professional barbers Lloyd and Neville operated out of a garage, and from early on Monday they snipped and trimmed the hair of the excited youngsters. (Daily Voice)

Friends and family members gathered at the Blode Street sports field in Lavender Hill for the last two Sundays to raise hope at an anti-drug sport tournament. Ralph Bouwers of Guardians of the National Treasures (GNT) hopes people will come out in their numbers to support the players in the final. (People's Post)

Lavender Hill soup kitchens and businesses depend on cheap supplies and many people living near the farms of the Philippi Horticultural Area depend on them for cheap or free vegetables. (Ground Up)

Through their work in the community, goodness is beginning to show off in Lavender Hill. In just a few months an open field in Blode Street, which was known as “a battlefield” because of gang wars, is slowing turning into a place where community members connect. (People's Post)

The Guardians of the National Treasure (GNT) partnered with Rygersdal FC for a soccer talent search in Lavender Hill. (Southern Mail)

Groups of children waiting with plates, cups or lunch boxes, stepping on each other to get food, will soon be a thing of the past thanks to a Lavender Hill resident who says he is restoring the dignity of local children. (People's Post)

Ralph Bouwers wants to give back to the community he came from. "Lavender Hill has always been my first love. I feel at home here - the community is in my blood." (Cape Argus)