| |
Some background
Most of you will know that the Lipizzaners have been in South Africa since 1948! And most of you reading this will probably have seen a performance of the Lipizzaners at some time or other in Johannesburg or other provinces where the Lipizzaners have given performances. Throughout the time that the Lipizzaners have been in South Africa, they have and still do experience difficult times. The team is currently without a major sponsor and this situation will probably continue to exist during the difficult economic times that we are currently experiencing.
What happened in late 2007
At the end of 2007, the Lipizzaner Centre was dangerously close to closing down. Four new Directors were appointed in January 2008 and through a lot of hard work and a huge amount of support from many wonderful people, we managed to survive and to pay back over 50% of the debt that was inherited. The balance – totalling around R600,000 – is still to be paid back.
We decided to ‘revive’ the Friends of the Lipizzaners in order to generate SMALL funds from MANY people, rather than to spend a lot of time pursuing one potential major sponsor, which is not easy in the current economic climate. This will give us better financial security rather than relying on one major sponsor. Membership of the Friends of the Lipizzaners costs only R100 a month or a discounted rate of R1,000 for a year.
Where is your money going, you may ask?
Very simply, your contributions will allow the Lipizzaners to survive in South Africa. Our focus, first and foremost, is, and always will be, on the welfare and preservation of the horses. Apart from keeping the performing stallions, one must also remember the costs involved with the breeding programme, the care of the mares, foals, yearlings and two year olds, and the eventual training of the young stallions in preparation for the performance. Also, the current financial situation does not presently allow for the expense of a Marketing Manager, or a marketing and advertising budget. Although we are currently a tenant of the Gauteng Horse Society, ideally we would like to be in a position of having our own premises to ensure long term security. We are working on this!
The new Directors all believe that the Lipizzaners belong to the people of South Africa and are utterly focused on ensuring their preservation for today and for future generations. We hope you will join as a ‘Friend’ and be part of this wonderful endeavour.
Click HERE to download Application Form.Please download, print, fill out and then fax the form to 011 467 1868 or email to tarragon@mweb.co.za |
|
