Laingsburg local Poppie van As sells roosterbrood on the side of the N1, but a chance encounter has seen her “go global”.

It all started three years ago when a local cyclist, Stan Engelbrecht, bought some of her roosterbrood and was taken with the simple yet delicious treat.

“The first thing that drew me to Poppie’s roadside stand was the wonderful aroma of her roosterbrood.”

He invited her to set up a stall at a cycling event he had a while later.

“She was a huge hit, preparing the roosterbrood on a hill just outside of town near the end of that day’s racing stage. Everyone loved it, and so she was asked to return every year,” reported the South African.

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A post shared by Rosaleen ‘Poppie’ Van As (@poppievanas) on Aug 9, 2019 at 1:47am PDT

More recently, some Italian cyclists loved Poppie so much that they invited her to go to Gaieo, Italy, and even paid for her ticket.

A Backabuddy campaign has been set up for her visa appointment, new clothes and transport between Cape Town and Lainsburg. The target has been reached but Engelbrecht will be using the rest of the funds to make a documentary about her personal life and story. Poppy will receive a 50% share of any profits that result from the documentary.

Poppie has an Instagram and you can check her out at @Poppievanas.

 

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If you need something to smile about today, have a read through some of @poppievanas’ donation messages: 🇿🇦 “Tannie moet kom roosterkoeke bak by die Transbaviaans. Gaan geniet Italie my tannie” – Olav ➡️ “Bon voyage Poppie… Have a magical time, and show the Italians how it’s done!” – Neira & Adrian ➡️ “Geniet die ongelooflike reis en koester elke oomblik. Jy is ‘n pragtige mens en verdien dit.” – Sara Erasmus ➡️ “Well done Aunty Poppie…Enjoy every moment of this journey and don’t be worried about anything….this is YOUR moment. ” – Tasha ➡️ “Ant Poppie, van een Karookind na ‘n ander, geniet dit!” – Karookind ➡️ “Poppie! Your energy and positive spirit is infectious. Hope you have any amazing time in italy x” – Rich J ➡️ “Have fun Tannie Poppie!” – Shane Durrant ➡️ “Sterkte, tannie Poppie! En geniet dit! Daai Italianers weet nie wat’s coming their way nie.” – Toast Coetzer Support ‘Our Poppie Goes to Italy’ 🇮🇹 on Backabuddy: https://www.backabuddy.co.za/poppie-van-as #backabuddy #crowdfunding #poppievanas #laingsburg #instagood #inspirationalquotes #womansmonth @stanengelbrecht

A post shared by www.backabuddy.co.za (@backabuddy) on Aug 8, 2019 at 12:00am PDT

Read more on the South African.