Couple's Self-Funded 5km 'Penguin Plod' Raises Over R30K For SANCCOB

Photo Credit: The Wireless - Mario (far left) and Angie (far right)

Two Eastern Cape hikers turned their love for nature into something good, raising over R30,000 for SANCCOB and the endangered African Penguin.

Gqeberha, South Africa (06 August 2025) – Angie and Mario never set out to be conservation heroes. They’re just two avid hikers from Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth) who love nature, each other, and a lekker trail. But when they learned that the African Penguin could go extinct by 2035, a fire lit in their bellies.

The couple recently hosted a 5km fundraiser dubbed Plod With A Purpose for SANCCOB Gqeberha, raising more than R30,000 for the conservation of SA’s treasured African Penguins!

“I had no idea just how much trouble these adorable little birdies were in,” says Angie, who works at a local quarry. “If we don’t take action, they’ll be gone. Can you imagine a world without penguins?”

It all started in March when SANCCOB’s events and marketing co-ordinator, Jessica, reached out to Angie, asking for 8,600 pebbles for an awareness campaign. Each stone would represent a remaining breeding pair in the wild. That number stuck with her. Instead of just donating, she and Mario decided to do more.

“We discussed collaborating with all the hiking clubs to do a hike in the area and all funds raised from that hike would be donated. But we felt that also limited the exposure and support we could get for the penguins. So we decided to open it to the public, making it more accessible.”

With no fundraising experience and lots of love, they planned a full-on community plod, funding most of it out of their own “tiny little odd pockets found on jean pants,” as Angie puts it.

And it worked.

Held on Sunday 3 August, the event brought locals together to walk 5km, enjoy a behind-the-scenes SANCCOB tour, meet fellow hikers, and shop penguin-themed merch, including limited edition T-shirts designed by Eastern Cape artist Tori Stowe and her son, Noah. Tori donated her time and artwork, and Noah, a young entrepreneur, screen-printed the shirts as part of his pocket money business.

“We met the most amazing people along this journey,” says Angie.

Special characters showed up to make the day even more impactful, like the fundraiser’s food vendor, The Perky Penguin (SANCCOB’s resident coffee shop), who donated a portion of their sales on the day. The café is run by Tom Swartz, winner of South African Survivor, and his wife Nicci, a graffiti artist.

Many other players roped in with Angie, Mario and SANCCOB to make it count. Signs along the 5km route were generously sponsored by DALTAR Print & Copy and The Wireless joined in to capture the day and bring ‘gees’ to the event.

But fundraising wasn’t the couple’s only goal. Awareness was just as important.

Angie and Mario’s Facebook page, originally created to document hiking trails in the Eastern Cape, became a penguin portal. Their “penguin fever” saw them post radio interviews, share conservation tips, and rally support from hiking clubs and local businesses.

“Our Facebook page was overrun with penguins and we felt like the local SANCCOB!”

The African Penguin population has sadly dropped dramatically in recent decades due to habitat loss, overfishing, and environmental changes. Conservation groups like SANCCOB are working tirelessly to reverse the trend, but they need support, and people like Angie and Mario are what they (and the world) needs.

With many now asking what’s next, the couple is thinking about future fundraisers, though, as Angie notes, “We can only do so much with our personal funds, which is a little sad because we definitely want to be the change we wish to see in the world.”

For now, they’ve proven what good a little love can do.