 |
|
|
Director's Note |
|
|
I have a part time passion for bowls, which is often referred to as ‘old mans marbles ’even though the current world champ is in his twenties. Bowls is one of the few sports that men and women can play at the same competitive level where physical strength plays very little part. It’s a game of mental endurance and skill. Bowls is also considered a great ‘leveller’, ie. just when you think you are high and mighty, some novice comes along and beats you, that’s life…. It is often said that one must learn how to lose before one can win. I recall being given some wise words from a ‘wise old codger’ 30 years ago when I first started playing this game. He said if you want to achieve success in this game you must remember the following three things, Master yourself, Master your playing surface and Master your opposition. I have never forgotten those words of wisdom and try to use that in my day-to-day life whether it's in business or sport. Some aspects relating to the ‘Master Strategy’ that one could consider, is: |
 |
| Enjoy what you do and have fun doing it but above all do it with integrity and honesty. One motivational poster reads: TEAMWORK "Sharing the doubts, the pressure, the work, the pleasure and the success: THAT’S TEAMWORK." Thank you Grant Davis Branch Director Port Elizabeth |
|
Ellies / Reach For A Dream charity drive This year, rather than having a "Welcome Back" party, Ellies decided to make a donation to charity.
|
|
Kabelo's Dream... To have a cell phone to call his sister Kabelo is a 9 year old boy with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia living in Frankfort with his sister as he unfortunately lost both his parents a few years ago. His dream was to have his very own cell phone so that he can call his sister whenever he is in hospital. He also received some toys to play with while he is in hospital. Kabelo couldn’t have been more excited about his new cell phone and the toys. Every time we see him at the hospital he tells us over and over how much he loves his cell phone and how much fun he is having with the toys. This was really a dream come true for this little boy! |
 |
 |
Leah's Dream... To have a playhouse Leah is a 9 year old girl with Hodgkins Disease who lives in Pretoria. When we arrived at Leah’s house, they were busy doing the finishing touches on the play house. With her mom’s help, we put her little stove, tables and chairs into her new house before she came home. Leah went out with her school teacher so that it would be a surprise when she got home. When they pulled up at the house we went and met her at the door. She was very surprised to see us! We blindfolded her (just for fun!) and slowly led her down to the garden where her dream was. When the blindfold was lifted, her mouth fell open. Her eyes started to smile and then we knew this was truly her dream come true. She immediately went into her new play house and started unpacking all her goodies and checking things out. She then ran out and gave everyone the biggest hugs.It was truly a pleasure to be part of this little girls dream. Her mom and dad will have to think on their feet as she mentioned that she wanted to sleep in her play house that night. |
|
Themba's dream... To have a bicycle* Themba is a 12 year old boy with Neuroblastoma. Themba was so sure of his dream… he wanted a bicycle which he could ride to school. When we fetched him at the Universitas Hospital he was in a good mood and kept asking where we were going. We took him to him favourite restaurant, which is KFC to enjoy lunch with his mother. He and David, a Reach For A Dream volunteer went out to ‘catch a breath of fresh air’ and this was the perfect opportunity to bring out his bicycle. When he came inside and saw his bicycle, he just shook his head and held his hands over his mouth with a look of utter joy in his eyes! On our way back to hospital, he made sure to say thank you and tell us that he would ride his bike everyday. * The child’s name has been changed and we have also been asked not to publish any photographs of the dream. |
|
Peter’s Dream… To go to Cape Town* Peter is a 7 year old boy with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia. He was extremely shy and didn’t talk much but seemed to enjoy his first day in Cape Town. He was very tired after that so the family went straight back to the hotel to rest and have an early night. The next day Peter was much more outgoing and talkative. Going up Table Mountain was a highlight and he specially loved the cable car even though it was freezing on top of the mountain! From there they went to Scratch Patch. Peter loves gem stones, so he really enjoyed that. They are such a lovely family and when Genine dropped them off at the hotel she got a big hug from Peter. Gill picked them up on Saturday and went on a scenic drive to Boulders to see the penguins. It was a pity that it was freezing cold and the wind was blowing with gale force. From there they went to the World of Birds which they all enjoyed. They finished off at Peter's favourite eating spot - McDonalds! He ended off another day tired but happy! On Sunday Mary collected them for their big trip to Robben Island. They really received royal treatment on board the ferry, with the Captain inviting Peter to steer the ship with him! When they got to the island, Peter was made to feel very special again by being given the key to Mandela's cell and was allowed to unlock it and go in first. A real treat! On the way back Peter was very tired and a bit nauseous. Mary dropped them off at their hotel and then collected them at 15h30 to take them to the airport. The whole family was very positive, spiritual and charming and thoroughly enjoyed their time together. Peter is the focus of their lives right now and they make sure that he feels loved and cared for all the time. * The child’s name has been changed and we have also been asked not to publish any photographs of the dream. |
|
Durban Scores at Annual FTA Golf Day On the 18th May, Ellies Durban sponsored a hole at the annual FTA Golf Day for all the mainstream Furniture, Trade and Appliance stores. We had a great time playing games that tied in with the Soccer theme and the winners walked away with prizes from our Appliance Range. The winner for the “closest to the pin” competition was awarded with a HD PVR Decoder + Installation, sponsored by Ellies and Multichoice. Ellies was awarded with the prize for Best Sponsored Hole, and now hold this title for three years running! This event was enjoyed by all 132 participants, and we look forward to the next. “Thanks to Natal for once again putting in a first class show” Regards |
 |
 |
Head Office Maintenance Team For many years now Head Office has had a single maintenance guy running around trying to keep the boat a float. And I must commend Russel Durand for his many years of effort put in. Approximately two years ago it was decided that a full maintenance team was to be put in place. Starting with myself as manager and Russel and recently retired Anderson Mamela as technicians. A few months down the line Richard Hennings joined our team as planner, buyer and the driving force behind all admin work. Since then Richard has now become my right hand man and two I.C. Last year in the beginning of June we had another two additions to our team of technicians and we welcomed Dave Doke and Willie Macondelnela. Where the importance of this team lies is in the general maintenance and upkeep of our building. It has over the last two years become very cost effective as now we do all our own fencing, dry walling, and repairing of broken windows, just to mention a few of our many talents. This is just tipping the iceberg as to what the maintenance team is involved with. |
|
The benefits of doing this ourselves is that we can knock up a fence in a warehouse at anytime that it is necessary at a fraction of the cost of getting a sub contractor in to do it. Adding to that, it is done with immediate affect. The skills learned by all of us in the maintenance team over the last two years has been endless and extremely exciting. I am sure that our maintenance division will continue to grow from strength to strength. Regards |
|
CHIMFUNSHI ORPHANAGE Chimfunshi Orphanage is located in central Zambia, on the Upper Kafue River, the waterway that meanders between Zambia and the DRC. It is located on land owned by the redoubtable Sheila Siddle, who along with her late husband Dave Siddle, founded The Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage. This is a non-profit refuge that cares for a wide variety of wounded or unwanted animals, but the primary residents, are the orphaned chimps. Myself and a group of 12 greatly inspiring people went as volunteers to Chimfunshi on the 9th May 2010 for one week. The reason we went was to renovate the enclosures that were sadly in need of attention. We had to waterproof the top of the cages and paint the interior of each of the cages. Along the way we met 21 endearing chimpanzees and other animals of the Chimfunshi Orphanage, including a hippo! I learnt how to scrape down walls that were covered in white wash, apply primer and once dry, begin the painting process. Waterproofing was another challenge but one that we all quickly learnt how to do. One of the volunteers that came with us from Nelspruit, Danny, was our expert and he explained to us patiently how to proceed. One of the highlights of this trip was to actually go on two bushwalks with a few of the chimpanzees. We were able to physically walk in the bush and play with the chimps. We were also allowed to feed the chimps through the cages. |
 |
|
I am happy to say that the mission was accomplished and that the orphanage truly had a face lift that we were all proud to be associated with. The work was very intense and very difficult. However, this was an experience that I thoroughly enjoyed and will hold very dear to my heart forever. I have been truly enriched by this experience. Regards |
|
Soccer Fever Grips Ellies |
||
 |
|
 |
 |
Well Done Cecil Good service is very hard to get in South Africa today. However what I least expected I got from one of your employees, Cecil (Technical Advisor). I wasted lots of time and money after upgrading to HDPVR and using AV blasters. In desperation I came to your Selby branch. Cecil calmed me down with coffee. Tested both my systems and then calmly explained exactly what could be done. He dedicated close to one hour on my matter. No charge and service with a big smile. Please thank Cecil on my behalf as all is now working fine!!! I will mention his service to all who cross my path. Well Done Voloshnee I would like to take this opportunity to thank the staff at Ellies Cape Town especially Mr. Joe Faktor in the workshop, for his excellent services, expertise and manner in which he handled my A/V sender/receiver audio problems. He was ready to solve a difficult technical problem and was able to put everything back in order with a smile. I was very impressed with his manner of handling my case and would like to congratulate him and thank him for this, he was extremely humble and highly professional. You have a very special staff member with huge potential in your team and I appreciate the services that he provided, competently and quickly. It was really a pleasure especially because we are in a country where sloppy, error-prone, bad-mannered service has become the norm. Thank you again for the wonderful service Joe. |
|
St Mary's Childrens Home We at Ellies decided to all get together and donate Easter Eggs to a chosen charity which was St Mary's Childrens Home. The staff at Ellies really made an effort and donations were overwhelming. The Directors contributed R1000 worth of easter eggs to the donations box. A very big thank you to everyone who participated. The smiles and joy on the kids' faces were extremely heart warming. A big thanks to the Marketing department for their effort in organising the donation. |
 Click Here to Enlarge |
 |
PnP Golf Day This April Ellies participated in the Pick 'n Pay Golf Day at Kyalami Golf Course. As you can see the theme was Soccer World Cup 2010 and our chosen country was of course South Africa. Besides a little rain the day was a lot of fun. A big thank you to the groups division (Sales Manager Brenden and Sales Reps Selvan, Marlon, Arthur) and the Marketing department for the effort that they put in, to make the day a huge success. |
|
Cats Digital Training Session The PK session done at Fotocats Learning Centre on HDMI was very successful. It was conducted by our Audio Category Manager, Dave Sternberg. The session was well attended. This was a great learning day for the staff. Gavin Cats also did a presentation. He asked his staff to focus on selling add-on products to clients and particularly Ellies products. We will be conducting more training sessions in the coming months. |
 |
 |
Blast from the Past! How long have you been working for Ellies(Pty)Ltd? What was your job description when you started? What is your job description today? Looking at this picture, which was taken approximately 13 years ago, is there anything you would like to change? Is there anything you would like to say to fellow staff members? |
|
|
Preferred word which best describes you? Did success come easily? What do you rate as your greatest achievement? What makes you laugh? What item can't you go without? Are there enough hours in a day? What is your all time favourite song? |
|
Do you enjoy reading, if so, what are you currently reading? What is the one rule you live by? What is your greatest talent? Best advice? What is your favourite "Famous quote"? What are your future goals for the coming year?
|
