The MyPlanet Rhino Fund helped Addo Elephant Park purchase an all-terrain vehicle to help with anti-poaching activities.

If you’ve ever visited Addo Elephant Park, you know the bush there can be dense. REALLY dense. A large part of the park’s biome is thicket, and while it is excellent for providing shelter, food and safety for wildlife, it certainly creates challenges for the people on the ground trying to track that wildlife. And it’s certainly no easy task to keep our precious rhino safe under these conditions. That’s where the MyPlanet Rhino Fund comes in.

Last month the Fund helped Addo purchase an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) to assist rangers with anti-poaching operations and black rhino monitoring. Because of Addo’s dense vegetation, normal vehicles cannot get to many parts of the park. This ATV, however, laughs in the face of thick thorn bushes and will enable rangers to travel into those areas and be more effective in their work.

I was lucky enough to fly out to the Eastern Cape for the presentation of the ATV. John Adendorf, a senior section ranger and head of conservation in Addo, graciously hosted me during my stay. While in the park I got the opportunity to meet some of the staff on the ground. I also got some down time, a rarity these days, and what a treat it was! Perfect weather, a gorgeous setting and a team of good people committed to help stamp out poaching and preserve our country’s precious resources. Some days a guy just can’t complain.

Addo is the only South African National Park that is home to the ‘Big 7′: elephant, rhino, lion, buffalo, leopard, whale and the great white shark. Thanks to your continued support (swiping your MySchool card!), we are helping the men and women on the ground working in Addo to ensure it never becomes the ‘Big 6’!

If you don’t yet have a MySchool card, do one thing (#DOT) – pick up a card online or in a Woolworths store and make sure you designate the MyPlanet Rhino Fund your beneficiary. MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet Facebook

Thank YOU for making a positive difference!