Marion is the Director, having previously worked as Breadline Africa’s Group Marketing Executive in 2014. She has specialist skills in marketing, eCommerce and large scale programme management as well as extensive experience in the corporate world where she headed major global projects in a 20-year career with Shell International.

Marion has a BA.Hons degree as well as a Diplom Betriebswirtschaft (Degree in Business Administration) and MBA from Heriot Watt University. Her compassion has led her to roles in the NGO sector including Chief Operating Officer at Umthombo Wesizwe, followed by a Deputy Director position at African Solutions to African Problems in Cape Town. She is passionate about her civic responsibility and is a previous chairman of the Muizenberg Improvement District; volunteered with the Homestead Street Children’s Project; a former Neighbourhood Watch committee member and volunteered for five years as wildfire fighter with the Volunteer Wildfire Services. She is also an outdoor junkie and has run more than 50 marathons including 11 at ultra-distance and completed the Enduroman team challenge which included relay swimming the Channel.

Jaco joined Breadline Africa in 2018 as head of Finance. He has 8 years of corporate experience and expertise in corporate finance, governance, empowerment, business development and management. Jaco has a BAcc degree from Stellenbosch University and a BComp (Hons) from UNISA. He successfully completed his auditing articles at Baker Tilly Greenwoods, Cape Town.

Jaco is passionate about his civil society roles: he is the current vice chairman of Hope Street (a Cape Town-based NGO that works within the homeless community to build bonds with the community and to assist in connecting with viable employment opportunities). He is also an avid volunteer at numerous animal welfare charities. A keen sportsman, Jaco has completed more than 5 warriors OCR races and has participated in multiple trail running races. In 2016, he even participated in a charity boxing fight (which he won) to raise funds for the Peninsula School Feeding Association.

Caroline joined Breadline Africa in June 2021 as the International Business Development manager and is now taking on the role of partnerships manager after 13 years of working in business development and partnership relations in the travel industry. Caroline got her undergrad degree in philosophy and law and then a postgraduate diploma in marketing management and digital marketing from Red and Yellow.

Caroline is an avid traveller and has been to over 40 countries. She also loves hiking and spends most weekends on Table Mountain or on the beach with her two young children and husband.

Ali is Breadline Africa’s Programme Manager and joined the organisation in 2020. He gained great infrastructure development experience while working at Rabie Property as a Project Manager and holds a degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Cape Town.

Ali has a history of volunteerism and organised several small-scale social food drives in the past and attended and later facilitated leadership camps (GOAL Foundation) to inspire youth. In his free time, Ali enjoys being outdoors with friends playing rugby or golf, cycling, running, or hiking.

Lene has more than 20 years’ experience working across Africa in the not-for-profit world. She has served as a strategic leader for a medium-sized and a large public health organisation, one focused on child eye health and another one on HIV prevention. She has managed multi-country operations and worked across organisational levels and departments.

Lene thrives in an environment where she can nurture relationships with a diversity of donors, government officials, partner institutions, diplomats, representatives of UN organisations and other key players relevant to the vision of the organisation she works for.

Lene is driven by impact and locally relevant innovation that pushes individuals, communities, and financiers to co-create and deliver for tomorrow what they believe is unimaginable. She believes in enabling all players to contribute to reduce the impact of what hampers our ability to optimise a better future.

Inspired by her vision to solve everyday challenges by bringing the best and most pioneering minds and sectors together, Lene co-founded a social innovations catalyst, Creativity Will Save Us, in 2021 and she continues to serve on the Board of Directors.

Lene’s experience of good governance, strategy and operational excellence adds depth and diversity and makes her a champion of strategic collaboration.

In her spare time, Lene enjoys time in nature with her family, usually where it is quiet and peaceful. She also likes to occasionally travel out of the country, including to Norway, where she grew up.

Selina moved to Breadline Africa in 2004 from Isonka Trust, the administrative arm of Breadline Africa. Selina refers to the NGO sector as “the place where she truly belongs” and she is extremely passionate about the work that Breadline Africa does in under-resourced communities. She has extensive marketing experience and is determined to use her skills to contribute to the greater good.

Selina is very family orientated and spends her free time with her family, “doing things her children love”. She is committed to raising children who are committed to doing good things for others.

Janine joined Breadline Africa as the National Business Development Manager in June 2021. With many years of experience managing high-profile exhibition stands and trade show infrastructure – a sector badly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic – Janine very quickly found herself shifting gears and instinctively changed direction by using her broad skill set and high energy to positively influence the lives of others in her local community and beyond.

As an effective relationship builder, Janine thrives on developing relationships that foster significant collaborations to support community development. In her free time, Janine loves to explore all that Cape Town has to offer with her family and friends!

Johan joined Breadline Africa in May 2020 as the Marketing Manager following nearly ten years at Media24 where he gained valuable experience in digital and print subscription marketing and business development. Johan studied advertising at AAA School of Advertising, a Post Graduate Diploma in Enterprise Management at UCT and he earned an MBA degree from UCT’s Graduate School of Business.

Johan is an avid woodworker and loves nothing more than hiking in the great outdoors and discovering wide open spaces. Johan is married and has a young daughter that keeps him exceptionally busy building treehouses and doll furniture.

Debbie works as Breadline Africa’s financial administrator. Her drive for meaningful work led her to the organisation in 2002. She has extensive experience of the non-profit sector and has worked in all departments at Breadline Africa in one form or another, gaining not only valuable insight into all aspects of the organisation but also building a reputation as Breadline Africa’s institutional memory centre.

When not in front of a computer, you will find Debbie painting or exercising her considerable creative talent in one way or another.

Cleon joined Breadline Africa in 2007 as a Junior Marketing Assistant. She has since obtained a Marketing degree and is currently a valuable member of our Marketing Team. Cleon is responsible for Breadline Africa’s extensive Direct Mail Programme which spans South Africa, Ireland, Netherlands and the United Kingdom. She is the proud mother of two young girls and is very enthusiastic about her contribution to community development.

Alex joined Breadline Africa in 2021 as an intern, capturing beneficiary data. He has a passion for positively impacting both the environment and local communities and has volunteered on multiple farms and eco-villages throughout the Western and Eastern Cape. Alex manages green building and natural farming projects across South Africa and has learned a great deal about the ECD sector from his mother who is well-known in the non-profit and higher education sectors, as well as his time at Breadline Africa.

Alex is currently the Programmes and Data Co-ordinator and works to ensure that the projects that Breadline Africa supports are generating a sustainable, positive impact.

Gail joined Breadline Africa in 2009 as Allocations Assistant and is now an important member of our Programmes Team. She previously worked at Grow Peace in Africa, a non-profit organisation, where she managed the office and administration. Currently, she engages on a daily basis with Breadline Africa’s beneficiary organisations. This feeds Gail’s passion for working with people at grass-roots level who run inspiring projects in their communities.

Gail believes that the community is her university. When she’s not in the office, she loves a good run, hates a messy room and can do a mean push-up. Working at Breadline Africa has taught her that “all of us can and should contribute to the humanitarian effort needed in our societies”.

Kim joined the Breadline Africa team as a digital marketing specialist in 2019. She thrives on developing and enhancing digital marketing campaigns and growing digital channels to drive and grow business. She enjoys the creative side of digital marketing adventures and has demonstrated successful results in planning and executing digital marketing campaigns in various business sectors. Kim takes an in-depth, hands-on approach to new social business technology and is invested in implementing new and creative digital marketing strategies at Breadline Africa.

An avid cyclist, she considers herself a slightly serious rider but is keen on most outdoor experiences. She spends most of her free time armed with a camera, capturing life through the lens while diving into new adventures.

Graeme studied Architecture at the University of Natal and worked at various architectural firms for a few years before realising that his passion lies in Construction Project Management and Property Management. He then added a Project Management Diploma to his C.V. Graeme managed a multi-million rand property portfolio in Cape Town for a foreign investor, where he held the position of CEO for nearly 28 years.

Graeme joined Breadline Africa in 2016, bringing a wealth of hands-on construction/project management experience with him. Graeme plays golf when time allows, is married to Wendy and has two adult sons.