CANCER PATIENT REJECTED BY SHOPRITE P.R.O.

<p>I'd like to highlight a store I'm absolutely disgusted by: Shoprite Belhar, Cape Town. My friend Elmarie Adams recently appealed to their store for donations towards her fund raising event. The event, a breakfast, is aimed at raising funds towards her chemotherapy treatment. Elmarie (36) was diagnosed with breast cancer in November 2015, and had a mastectomy in December 2015. Her chemotherapy started in January 2016, and will end at the end of this month, May 2016. Elmarie has 2 young boys aged 4 and 8, and her husband is the sole bread winner. With no medical aid, it's obviously a challenge to pay these medical bills on their own.</p> <p>This brings me to the issue I'd like to raise. Elmarie's request at store level was accompanied by a list of items required to host the breakfast, and was met with a rather snobbed response from PRO Samanatha Weber, that they do not help people with financial assistance. Now Elmarie was not asking for money, she was merely appealing to the store for any forms of donations towards this event - monetary assistance was never requested. There's the standard song and dance reply about their social responsibility policies and only assisting people on the bread line....</p> <p>So a young mother battling cancer is not living on the bread line?!! Where has the humanity and consideration gone for those really in need? We might not have appealed through an organisation, but should such a simple request just be discarded with a standard response?</p> <p>Again, financial aid was not requested (as per Samantha's hasty reply). But things they would have returned to their warehouses, would have been a welcome relief to the Adams family at this point. Elmarie's is far from asking for hand outs of any kind, she has more dignity than that. And I admire her courage and tenacity in being resourceful enough to try and raise these funds on her own. Battling cancer comes with so much grief and trauma, and to be snubbed like this while trying to reach out for some support and assistance, is beyond disgusting from such a highly regarded chain as Shoprite. Even in store, she was given the run around by management and other staff members - and this while just trying to follow up on her request. She was left waiting, while the lady she approached pretended to look busy elsewhere, all the time glaring to see when she would leave. Really now Shoprite Belhar?!!!</p> <p>We appeal to Mr Christo Wiesse, whom we know to be a compassionate and generous man, to please look at the P.R.O in question, and determine if this request was dealt with appropriately. We do understand that there are people who take advantage of such social responsibility policies, but we're willing to provide you with proof of the medical bills, detailed expenses of the fund raiser, and a report on how those funds were used towards the medical bills.</p> <p>We thank you for your prompt response.</p> <p>T.Hendricks</p>