Rascallion Wines announce Dignity Dreams sponsorship – 31 August 2020
Rascallion Wines, the Stellenbosch based wine brand, has announced their sponsorship of Dignity Dreams, which provides comfort and menstrual health education to young women and girls from disadvantaged and at-risk communities in South Africa.
Research across 5 African countries shows that one in ten girls miss school for up to five days per cycle, and full participation in school is often an issue due to the lack of useable sanitary pads. As a result, millions of female scholars in our country run the risk of falling behind in the schooling system. Aside from practical educational factors, the emotional impact on young women who find themselves without adequate sanitary product support has far reaching psycho-social consequences.
As part of their commitment to the upliftment of marginalised young women, Rascallion Wines has chosen to partner with local NGO Dignity Dreams, an organisation that has been active in the sanitary product support space for disadvantaged communities since 2013. Managing Director and co-owner of Rascallion Wines, Ross Sleet, explains, “Dignity Dreams is helping to address the fact that for many young girls and women, menstruation is an uncomfortable and stressful time. In many disadvantaged communities the lack of access to cost-effective sanitary products is a serious concern. Playing a positive role in our communities has always been part of our mission and we are thrilled to have partnered with Dignity Dreams”.
Dignity Dreams manufactures and distributes washable pads that when used effectively can replace 144 disposable pads over their 4-year lifespan. Not only does this have a positive environmental impact, the NGO employs 20 women directly, who are provided with employment and who in turn support up to 10 family members each.
As an initial donation, Rascallion Wines has purchased sanitary pad packs on behalf of various wine industry members, journalists, and influencers as they spread the message behind their initiative. The permanent vehicle to raise funds for Dignity Dreams however, is Rascallion’s new range of wines, the With Love from the Cape Collection. Consisting of five single varietal wines, a Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Rose, Pinotage, and Cabernet Sauvignon, a portion of the retail price of every bottle sold worldwide for as long as the brand exists, will be donated to Dignity Dreams. So far as well as being on sale in South Africa, the wines have been exported to China and Belgium, and are expected to reach other countries around the world as the post COVID-19 economies pick up.
Ross explains further: “We are determined to play a positive role in this post Covid-19 reality and we sincerely hope we can inspire consumers and wine industry personalities alike to join us in our endeavours. We all know that keeping young girls and women in education as long as possible, has far-reaching positive social and economic benefits for our communities. The work that Dignity Dreams does in our communities is vital to the ongoing betterment of our society in general.”
Sharon Gordon, CEO of Dignity Dreams, joined with Ross to explain their relationship and working via a YouTube video which can be found at https://youtu.be/7LqUzN1i-o4
To find out more about Dignity Dreams, please visit www.dignitydreams.com
Sharon Gordon can be contacted on +27 83 604 0477 or at sharon@dignitydreams.com
Ross Sleet can be contacted on +27 7888 62246 or at ross@rascallionwines.co.za
Image above: Managing Director Ross Sleet and Brand Ambassador Micyla Pienaar outside the Rascallion Wines’ Cellar Door in Bosman’s Crossing, Stellenbosch
- Blog by Julia Moore