ELS FOR AUTISM Ernie Els and his son Ben, who has been diagnosed with autism
More than R100 000 is hoped to be raised at at this year’s Investing in African Mining Indaba Golf Tournament for golfing legend Ernie Els’s foundation, Els for Autism, to assist 114 families having to deal with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs).
Els’s 11-year-old son Ben Els has been diagnosed with autism. Ernie Els Group South Africa brand manager Duncan Woods tells Mining Weekly that the money will benefit the foundation’s beneficiaries through the organisation’s network centres, which include people living with ASDs in Johannesburg, Gauteng; Durban, in KwaZulu-Natal; and Cape Town and Somerset West, in the Western Cape.
Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by impaired social interaction, limited verbal and nonverbal communication, and repetitive behaviour. Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how nerve cells and their synapses connect.
Woods says this will be the second time that Els for Autism will benefit from the indaba’s golf tournament, which will take place at the Milnerton golf course, north of Cape Town, on February 8 – the day before the indaba gets under way.
“We are grateful to the Mining Indaba for supporting our charit- able initiative through the golf event. As last year’s tournament was a big success, we would like to take this event from strength to strength,” says Woods.
He tells Mining Weekly that Els for Autism actively raises funds through a yearly series of golf events.
The Milnerton golf course is an 18-hole, 72 par 6 101 m coastal course and was awarded five stars by golfing information provider worldgolf.com in 2013 for its design, condition, service and facilities.
The Investing in African Mining Indaba will take place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre from February 9 to 12.