Now in its eighth year, the annual Seven7 Drive – supported by Kia South Africa since inception – will again be spearheaded by one of the initiative’s co-founders, well-known adventure and overlanding journalist, Danie Botha, accompanied by South African motorsport legend, Hannes Grobler, and a group of enthusiastic, adventure-ready content creators and journalists.

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, and as the month draws to a close, the Seven7 Drive team will visit several towns and cities across South Africa over seven days. Covering just under 7 000 km, the Seven7 Drive will visit Durban, Rhodes, Gqeberha, Barrydale, Cape Town, Upington, Polokwane and Pretoria to raise funds for Cupcakes of Hope, a charity organisation that raises awareness and funds for families in need of medical assistance.

“Fundraising is a task that never stops, and despite numerous fundraising efforts and donations that are received on an ongoing basis, the need for more funds remains dire,” comments Christo Valentyn, GM: Marketing at Kia South Africa. “Kia’s support has been in place since day one, and by working collaboratively with the Seven7 Drive’s passionate founders, we’re honoured to once again play a role in raising awareness of the early detection of childhood cancer, spreading some cheer in oncology wards across the country and raising funds for Cupcakes of Hope.”

The Seven7 Drive organisers added a number of new fundraising initiatives to its programme in 2022 and will build on this in 2023. As South Africa celebrates Heritage Day on Sunday, September 24th, the 2023 Seven7 Drive will kick off with a gala dinner at Forti TOO restaurant in Pretoria. Renowned restauranteur, Fortunato Mazzone, is upping the ante this year by offering a four-course dining experience, including some exceptional wines and an enchanting opera performance by singers Bongi and Papi Musa. This dinner helped raise more than R50 000 for Cupcakes of Hope in 2022.

Renowned South African singer, Mathys Roets, will again champion a Kia to travel to the Eastern Cape hamlet of Rhodes to perform an intimate concert in aid of Cupcakes of Hope at the town’s well-known Walkerbouts Inn.

In 2022, more than 50 guests attended, raising a total of R5,200 for Cupcakes of Hope in the process. Added to this year’s programme is a second fundraising concert, where the much-loved Louise Carver will perform at the Karoo Art Hotel in Barrydale. The 2023 Seven7 Drive will conclude – as is tradition – at the Steve Biko Academic Hospital in Pretoria on Sunday, 1 October 2023.

Tickets for the Seven7 Drive Gala Dinner at Forti TOO Restaurant in Pretoria can be booked at R1 000 per person. This includes a four-course dinner, a selection of wines as well as entertainment. To book, email marketing@kia.co.za.

Tickets for the Mathys Roets concert at Walkerbouts Inn, Rhodes, can be booked by emailing bookings@walkerbouts.co.za. Tickets are priced at R150.

Tickets for the Louise Carver concert at Karoo Art Hotel, Barrydale, can be booked by emailing reservations@karooarthotel.co.za or calling 066-189-7457. Tickets are priced at R150.

Alternatively, donations can also be made directly to Cupcakes of Hope by visiting www.cupcakesofhope.org. Donors will be issued with an S18A Certificate for tax purposes.