Every day needs to be a Mandela Day

Nearly two decades after Mandela Day was introduced, many charities say the challenge is not persuading people to give 67 minutes to a good cause. It is encouraging them to return on the 68th minute. 

As 18 July approaches, non-profit organisations say enthusiasm for Mandela Day remains, but it looks different from the excitement that surrounded the campaign in its early years. While some still see a surge of volunteers and corporate support, others say many participants now arrive at the last minute, often because they feel obliged to do something. 

For Jewish organisations and charities, the conversation goes further. Mandela Day reflects values deeply rooted in Judaism, including tzedakah (charitable giving), chesed (loving kindness), and tikkun olam (repairing the world). And those values suggest that caring for others should be a year-round commitment rather than a once-a-year event. 

Danny Diliberto, founder of the Ladles of Love feeding scheme, believes Mandela Day continues to enjoy widespread support, although the charitable landscape has become more crowded. “We’ve always done Mandela Day as a big event,” he says, “People would contact me and say, ‘What are you doing for Mandela Day? Can we come and join?’” 

Now, many more organisations host Mandela Day initiatives, creating greater competition for volunteers and corporate support. At the same time, he has seen companies increasingly embrace volunteering as a team-building exercise. “I’m finding that corporates are wanting to do a team build with purpose rather than just some arbitrary get-together.” 

Although Ladles of Love experiences a noticeable spike in activity around Mandela Day, Diliberto says the organisation deliberately encourages supporters to think beyond a single day. 

Because Mandela Day falls on a Saturday this year, many workplaces have shifted their activities to weekdays or expanded them into Mandela Month. Ladles of Love now offers them the opportunity to host their own workplace activations throughout July. “We’re trying to expand on ‘Let’s go beyond Mandela Day’,” he says. 

Souper Troopers manager Moeshfieqah Bosch has also noticed a change in public behaviour. “It’s not like it used to be. A lot of people reach out lastminute.com.” 

New supporters often discover Souper Troopers through online searches for Mandela Day volunteering opportunities. “The saddest part is they don’t know much about us,” says Bosch. “They’re just looking for an organisation.” 

However, she says perceptions often change after volunteers spend time alongside people experiencing homelessness. Rather than simply serving meals, Souper Troopers encourages volunteers and beneficiaries to cook together, eat together, and spend time getting to know one another. “We see the human before the homeless,” Bosch says. 

She believes those personal connections can be the most valuable outcome of Mandela Day. When volunteers leave, they take with them a deeper understanding of homelessness, greater gratitude for their own circumstances, and a desire to return. 

Bosch would nevertheless prefer organisations to volunteer throughout the year. “It’s volunteering your time,” she says. “Even if it’s a pop-in.” She suggests companies dedicate regular volunteer days for different departments instead of concentrating all their efforts on Mandela Day. “If they could make a once-a-month volunteer day, that would be so amazing.” 

Like Ladles of Love, Souper Troopers experiences a full calendar during Mandela Month before activity settles back into its usual rhythm. For Bosch, the real success comes when those first visits develop into lasting relationships. 

The founder and executive director of volunteer network Mensch, Gina Flash believes Mandela Day still plays an important role, even if its meaning has evolved. She says South Africa has changed significantly since Mandela first became president. “I feel like Mandela Day gives South Africa a little bit of a reminder when we’re getting a little bit jaded that there is a reason to connect,” she says. 

But rather than focusing on a single event, Mensch has shifted its attention towards helping volunteers build long-term relationships with organisations across its network. 

This year, it is launching Volunteer 365, a programme designed to encourage people to volunteer consistently throughout the year while connecting their service to Jewish values. Flash says the organisation wants to use the energy generated by Mandela Day and Mitzvah Day as a starting point instead of ends in themselves. 

“I think Mandela Day just gives us a point in the calendar to highlight volunteering, to showcase the network, and gives us something to point at and say it’s an opportunity to come and experience an organisation.” 

Participants in Volunteer 365 will meet regularly, volunteer with different organisations, and reflect together on Jewish teachings about service. “It needs to organically grow into something that is meaningful for people,” she says. 

She believes that if enthusiasm around Mandela Day has declined, it presents an opportunity to rethink how people engage with volunteering. “It can feel a bit empty if you come and just make sandwiches one day and that’s it. If you really start to get to know an organisation, it becomes part of your life.” 

The Angel Network founder and chief executive Glynne Wolman also believes Mandela Day has become too closely associated with one day on the calendar. “Every day is Mandela Day at The Angel Network.” For Wolman, limiting service to 67 minutes misses the spirit of both Mandela’s legacy and Jewish values. “You can’t say I’m going to repair the world for 67 minutes a year,” she says. 

Organisations such as The Angel Network work throughout the year to support vulnerable communities, making sandwiches, supplying schools, distributing blankets, and creating educational opportunities long after Mandela Day has passed, says Wolman. 

She believes many companies feel obligated to spend their corporate social investment budgets around Mandela Day, but hopes they will recognise that communities’ needs don’t disappear once July ends. 

Diliberto echoes that sentiment, saying that South Africa’s deep social challenges cannot be solved by charities alone. “We as individuals have to do our part.” 

He believes volunteering benefits both the people receiving help and those giving it. “It’s good for your soul. It keeps you grounded. It makes you feel good. It promotes kindness.” 

For Jewish South Africans that message aligns naturally with traditions that place tzedakah, chesed, and tikkun olam at the centre of daily life. Mandela Day may inspire millions of South Africans to give 67 minutes of their time, but the organisations on the receiving end hope those first acts of service become something more enduring. For them, the greatest tribute to Mandela is not what happens on one day in July, but what happens on the other 364 days of the year.