"This has impacted the whole family greatly, and it breaks my heart how much I miss them," De Koning said.
"It's terrible to go to their house and everything is still there, left in limbo.
"I can't believe it's been five months already, it's just surreal."
De Koning said that because the couple had remained in South Africa for so long it was getting to the point where "things were getting really tough" financially.
"Things are pretty dire over there, and the industry that they're in, hospitality, is really struggling," she said.
"We just want to find a way to help make ends meet for them, because they have a life to maintain in South Africa, as well as rent, bills and tax to pay in New Zealand."
• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website
Wolmarans said the mood in South Africa had "escalated from mild panic to utter chaos" and that the couple missed the tranquillity of "little old Whanganui".
"The recovery rates here are looking well, but we're now on day 131 of our nationwide lockdown, which has almost completely collapsed the South African economy," Wolmarans said.
"We've heard news from the [New Zealand] Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi that our plight hasn't been forgotten and that our issues are 'top of mind' with Cabinet, so we are hoping that it will bring relief or even just a timeline on when we will be able to come home."
Wolmarans said that although she agreed with the Government's decision to keep borders closed, the couple had been forced to sacrifice "a number of things in our collective effort to ensure the safety of the team of 5 million".
"Every bit [of the fundraiser] that we have extra will be donated to other charities to pay it forward and keep the spirit of 'ubuntu' alive in well in a struggling society.
"Ubuntu is a Xhosa phrase captioned by a common view here in South Africa, which translates to 'a quality that includes the essential human virtues: compassion and humanity' and that we are all, despite our differences, inherently connected'.
"I think that's beautiful, especially in a time where there is so little good news and common understanding left between people."
To donate to Ananda De Koning's GoFundMe page, go to
https://www.gofundme.com/f/hope-for-the-hayes039s