Vanessa Kruger

What does your company do?

I am Charmaine Kruger nominating Vanessa Kruger for the Santam Women of the Future Awards. Thank you for the opportunity. The organization Pieter Kruger Foundation provides non funded skill training for unemployed people in Mdantsane Township, East London, Vosloorus Township, Johannesburg and Jane Furse Settlement, Limpopo the foundation serves mainly in East London. The foundation's main project is training unemployed people to become chefs through the Catering & Hospitality Programme it is aimed at unemployed beneficiaries and entrepreneurs who would like to obtain more skills, start a career or business in Catering and Hospitality. After the programme they seek employment in the Catering or run their own small business. The nominee Vanessa is one of the Directors that travel provincially to volunteer her time to run the project. As part of the programme there is a Volunteer Programme that the students can take part in. They can volunteer for the Hunger Relief Projects and Soup Kitchens for Pieter Kruger Foundation and Open Your Heart Foundation and Events for CVP Hospitality Group both organizations that Vanessa is also part of and at the same time they get experience in cooking and obtain work experience while still studying at Pieter Kruger Foundation. Students that part take in the volunteer programme can obtain a Letter or Work Experience Certificate. Catering & Hospitality Programme Overview: 4 month Programme Cooking and Baking Theory, Cooking and Baking Practical Training Décor & Events Management & Business & Entrepreneurship Website: https://www.pieterkrugerfoundation.com/ Facebook Page: Pieter Kruger Foundation SA https://www.facebook.com/PKFTeam/ Facebook Page: Open Your Heart Foundation SA https://www.facebook.com/OYHFoundation/

What is your biggest success?

I have learned that Vanessa's greatest achievement has been to sustain the Catering & Hospitality Programme for Pieter Kruger Foundation independently for 10 years and seeing the lives of beneficiaries being transformed and changes. Visiting well known places and seeing Graduates working as Head Chefs and Managers and Kitchen Staff walking around the busy areas and malls and seeing students street Fast Food outlets. The highlight of the journey was also to being an Ambassador for Brand South Africa and receiving a Gauteng Premier Service Excellence Award for one of the foundation's projects.

What has been your biggest hurdle?

Vanessa's biggest hurdle but interesting hurdle has been the foundation does not have its own car or transport. So travelling between provinces East London, Gauteng and Limpopo had to be done with Intercape Bus. The foundation turned the hurdle into a positive as the intercape bus does allow for plenty of additional items to be couriered on the bus with a additional fee. We could courier all our training equipment, tools and even tables when we did a Catering & Hospitality Progamme for Cape Town.