Danny Diliberto
Founder
We need to perform 'Seva' every day. 'Seva' is a beautiful Sanskrit word that refers to the art of selfless service..
ABOUT Danny
After discovering a more spiritual path and embracing the philosophy and work of Seva (small acts of kindness); Danny, then a restaurateur and manager in the food industry, started cooking soup from the restaurant he had co-founded in St Georges Mall. Together with a chef and volunteers, they managed to feed people from the homeless community weekly. Soon after, the feeding kitchen began serving meals in Roeland Street, and in 2015 from the Haven Shelter in Sea Point.
Deeply embedded in the belief of - giving of yourself, because you can, without wanting anything in return - Ladles of Love was born.
At the 2020 GQ Awards in honour of his hard work and dedication to feeding those in need,
Danny was named Humanitarian of the Year. He dedicates this award to every single person that has helped achieve these acts of Seva.
www.ladlesoflove.org.za
danny@ladlesoflove.org.za
AREAS WE WORK IN:
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Food Security
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Health
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Homelessness
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Volunteering
From their humble beginnings , Ladles of Love has grown from serving 70 meals at their very first soup kitchen, to one of the most prolific food charity organisations in South Africa.
When the coronavirus pandemic hit, the enormous number of starving people in need escalated across the city. Suddenly Ladles had to mobilise within restrictive confines to connect those in need with those who could help.
First, their suburban Sandwich Drive was born: a city-wide initiative mobilising people to give back from the safety of their own homes. The Sandwich Drive had rallied families across the Cape to make sandwiches, delivering more than 250 000 sandwiches in the first week.
While sandwiches go a long way to serve an immediate need, the organisation realised that a bigger, more sustainable solution was needed. Today they also work to collect and distribute up to 25 tons of produce weekly to those who are vulnerable and in need.
Currently, Ladles of Love supports more than 130 beneficiaries, including NPOs, Community CAN projects, ECD projects, schools, churches, community centres, community farmers, and even local people who run soup kitchens from their own homes. The focus is to invest in projects that are sustainable and will make a lasting change to the plight of vulnerable communities.
Beneficiaries are spread all over the Western Cape peninsula – from Wellington to Noordhoek and everywhere in between, including Khayelitsha, Delft, Tafelsig, Phillipi, and Gugulethu. To date, over 10 million meals have been distributed.
Moving into other areas of sustainability, Ladles of Love has recently developed their Realise A Dream programme (RAD), which provides and supports entrepreneurial training in the food industry.