OREANDA-NEWS. February 25, 2016. Ford has a wide range of far-reaching community initiatives in place across South Africa, and recently made the work of a Port Elizabeth-based training and skills development centre a whole lot easier with the donation of a Ford Ranger.

The long wheelbase single cab Ranger was handed over to the directors and management team from Reality, a local non-profit organisation headed by Lana Schroven, which is based in Mount Croix and has been in operation effectively since 2002.

“We are extremely grateful to Ford for the donation of this vehicle, as it will make such a difference to our day-to-day operations,” Schroven said after receiving the keys to the Ranger from John Cameron, Plant Manager of the Ford Struandale Engine Plant.

“It really means a lot to have a company like Ford that sees, shares and believes in what we do, and goes out of its way to help our organisation and supports our efforts to reduce unemployment in the local community.”

Under the mantra of ‘Realising Employment through Action and Training’, Reality originally started out under the auspices of the Reach Charitable Centre as a stepping stone for rehabilitated people. However, it came into its own in 2004, focussing on assisting unemployed, rehabilitated and disabled people by giving them training and providing skills development in order to secure jobs and become financially independent.

According to the organisation, its students come primarily from centres for domestic violence, soup kitchens, the Department of Correctional Services, churches, provincial hospitals, Community Chest, as well as various other organisations.

Reality has trained in excess of 3 300 students thus far, and is aiming to increase its uptake from the 652 students trained in 2015 to over 1 000 per year in fields such as bookkeeping, catering, basic computer skills, literacy, sewing and entrepreneurial skills. All of this is done free of charge – despite relying entirely on donations and fund-raising efforts.