On 20 November 2012, MSC Cruises will celebrate the arrival of beautiful cruise ship MSC Opera in South Africa by hosting a special onboard charity event in Cape Town in aid of abandoned and abused children.
Following a delicious lunch, guests will take part in a fun-filled auction during which they will be encouraged to outbid each other for one of the fabulous items on offer, supporting an incredibly worthwhile cause in the process. Guests will be spoilt for choice in terms of what to bid for, with a weekend in a 10th century chateau in France, stunning jewellery, collector’s wine, flights and tickets to a home game of MSC’s long-standing partner AC Milan, and a number of MSC cruises amongst the auctioned items.
All proceeds from tickets to the event and from the auction itself will go to Ukuthemba Foundation, a Cape Town based organization which provides safe and loving home environments for orphans and neglected and abused children. Previously named Building Blocks Children’s Homes, the foundation works in conjunction with local authorities to rescue babies and toddlers who face incredibly difficult situations, including extreme poverty, abuse, neglect and disability.
“MSC Cruises is the market leading cruise company in South Africa and we recognize that with leadership comes responsibility to the country and its people,” said MSC Cruises CEO Pierfrancesco Vago. “As a family company based on family values, our social priorities are children, families and education, which is why we are delighted to support Ukuthemba Foundation in keeping vulnerable children safe and offering them a stable home life.”
“Ukuthemba is a Xhosa word which means to believe, trust and hope. It is one of those words that is not easy to define because it represents the essence of all that we cherish in humanity, in the absence of which we find heartbreak and despair,” said Kim Killeen, Chairman of Ukuthemba Foundation. “Fortunately, through the work of our organisation and with the assistance of donations and fundraisers, those born into despair can be raised to believe that there is hope.”
After the charity event in Cape Town, MSC Opera’s next port of call will be Durban where she will be based for the summer season, operating the popular three and four night cruises to Maputo, Portuguese Island and Barra Lodge in Mozambique.
MSC Sinfonia will join MSC Opera in South Africa on the 28 November 2012 for her fourth season, offering Cape Town based guests a more luxurious cruising option out of their home port. She will operate a series of cruises to Mossel Bay, Walvis Bay, Luderitz, and, for the first time ever, an 11-night roundtrip cruise to Walvis Bay and St Helena. MSC Sinfonia will take over the Portuguese Island, Maputo and Barra Lodge cruises from MSC Opera on 18 February, operating out of Durban until 12 April 2013.
Source: msc.com
