Waltham Forest THUSO in South Africa

Success
2010 was the 15th anniversary of the support Waltham Forest Thuso in South Africa provides to young people at Thuto Lesedi Secondary school. The school is situated in a historically black township east of Johannesburg. The need for support was recognise by members of the local branch of the anti-apartheid movement who visited South Africa post apartheid. They saw that education was essential in helping the people of South Africa “Reap the Fruits of Freedom”. The substandard “Bantu education” of the apartheid era had left the black population with very poor education and no skills.
Schools for Black children had poorly educated teachers, no libraries, and no laboratories. Some were in disrepair and others held in shacks.
The situation was exacerbated by the HIV/AIDS pandemic which, by 1997, was leaving many orphans. This meant some young people were forced to leave school early, because there was no one to pay the annual school fee, of £2.

Education
In 1995 ACTSAWF setup a sponsorship program paying school fees and buying essential books for two orphans at Thuto Lesedi Secondary school. One went on to train as an engineer and the other was accepted to train as an pilot. In 2010 the number of sponsored pupils had reached 50.
In 1996 the organisation started sending schools in Vosloorus books to help them develop libraries. This work is being continued by WFTISA, ACTSAWF’S successor. Books are sent books through the “Book and 10pence” project run by Community H.E.A.R.T.
From 1995 to 1999 ACTSA Waltham Forest(ACTSAWF) contributed to the funding of community projects providing adult literacy classes and developing basic computing skills. WAFTISA’s supports pupils from the second year at secondary school, (year 9) to year 12, the final year (matriculation).

Food
During a visit to the school in 2005 discussions with sponsored pupils revealed some of them had no food. That year a food program was initiated with a contribution of one thousand pounds to provide lunch.
By 2010 WFTISA had extended the food program to include food packs to provide food at home. Over 500 children were benefitting from the food scheme. The head teacher, Mrs Tlhakanelo, commented that the effect was visible in how alert and engaged the pupils were in class. That confirms WFTISA’s belief that “a hungry child cannot learn”.
Thuto Lesedi Secondary school has benefited from the support WFTISA provides in many ways. The teachers are motivated by the help their learners receive. They no longer have to worry about hungry children and devise means of feeding them. They can concentrate on teaching.

Sponsorships
WFTISA’S involvement, and the high Matriculation examination passes, has also encouraged other sponsors to
support the school. In our summer 2010 news letter we mentioned some of the sponsorships viz: annual sponsorship of R400,000.00 over 5 years for the school; two newly built laboratories, one for maths and the other for science, both fully equipped with computers; an offer of  scholarships to study engineering.

In March 2011 the school received a minibus from SMD, a company in South Africa. The vehicle will be used to transport teams to games and anywhere else small school groups need to go. The Chair of WFTISA, Mmapula Small was invited to the handover event.Thank You
The sponsorships received through WFTISA means that children at Thuto Lesedi do not have to worry about fees and the cost of essential books. The food program ensured that they are no longer hungry all the time. and so they can learn. We at Waltham Forest Thuso in South Africa thank all sponsors and supporters who have made all this achievable.

We do believe that with your continuing support we will “ Make Poverty History Through Education”.
We thank Gerald, Naima and Adam for welcoming guests to their home for the Garden Party, on 7th June 2010. The event raised £1156.65 for the food project.
Over 500 orphans and other poor children benefit from the food program. In a school of nearly 2000 pupils this still does not provide for all those who could benefit from just a little more food in their day

HIV/AIDS
In order to reach more children, WFTISA is helping a project for women who are HIV positive or living in families with HIV/AIDS, “Azwikundi Women’s Health and Training” a Venda word for “it is possible”. As volunteers, these very poor women provide home care for sick people with AIDS in their community. Sadly some of the grandparents who care for orphans have developed dementia. The women’s group has developed a support group for them.

We help Azwikindi raise funds by buying their handicraft and selling it in the U.K.
During our trip to South Africa in April 2011, chair of WFTISA, Mmapula, was invited to a gathering where clothes donated by the organization were being distributed among needy children.

In 2009 we saw the school we support achieve many successes in winning competitions for sponsorship. Thuto Lesedi Secondary school also achieved the best grade 12 (Matriculation) results in South Africa. Nine pupils sponsored through WFTISA were among those who passed the final examination. Joseph Ngwenya won a  sponsorship, paying fees and a maintenance grant to study Engineering.

The support they received meant that they did not have to worry about fees and the cost of essential books. The food program WFTISA supports ensured that they were no longer hungry all the time. They could learn.

Sponsorships

The School received three sponsors in 2010 for grade 12 performance in 2009. The first one is Peermont Global that will be sponsoring the school for 5 years, giving R400,000 per year. The second sponsor is SAVCIO who built two laboratories, one for Maths and one for Science. Both centres will be fully equipped with computers, so at last, pupils will have opportunity to become computer literate.  This company will also award scholarships for best pupils who want to study engineering.

The school has also been given 2 Teacher “Ambassadors” to help pupils with Maths and Science. The Teach SA will also be donating mobile class rooms to alleviate the shortage of classes due to the high enrolment of learners. Standard Bank SA will be assisting with internship and scholarship for our Maths, Science and Accounting top pupils. The highest achieving Maths and Science pupils was invited to a luncheon and given an incentive of R500.00.

In 2009, we made a one-off payment of first year university fees, for Ntebaleng Maruping. WFTISA had sponsored her from year 8 through to year 12 at Thuto Lesedi Secondary School. She had not been able to get financial support for year one. She passed the end of year Business Management course examination, and was admitted to the second year, while applying for a student loan.
In a letter informing WFTISA about the schools achievement, Head teacher Mrs Zanele Tlhakanelo  Wrote  “We are doing our best as a school to ensure that our learners’ education is not compromised. Thanks to organisations like Waltham Forest Thuso in SA for believing in us as a school and assisting destitute learners although some have given already given up hope but your organisation is really making the difference.”

We at Waltham Forest Thuso in South Africa thank all sponsors and supporters who have made all this achievable. We do believe that with your continuing support we will “Make Poverty History Through Education” This year we will be sponsoring 52 pupils.

We thank Gerald, Naima and Adam for welcoming guests to their home for the Garden Party. On 7 June the event raised £1156.65 for the food project.

Food

In 2009 the money we raised helped to increase the number of pupils getting lunch at school from 220 to nearly 300. The number of those receiving food parcels to take home for evenings, weekends and school holidays also increased. In a school of nearly 2000 pupils this still does not provide for all those who could benefit from just a little more food in their day. In a project developed in partnership with the local community, the school has started growing vegetables. These supplement meals provided in school and in the homes of poor participating community members.

Book and 10 pence

Our support for Community H.E.A.R.T’s “Book and 10pence” appeal continues. In 2009 WFTISA collected 3,849 books for the project. Community H.E.A.R.T sends books to historically deprived schools, with no libraries, in South Africa.

The kind of books sent is fiction and non-fiction. The objective of the campaign is to promote an environment where children and young people enjoy reading.

Recreation

The school is currently looking for a donor or sponsor to help in developing recreational facilities.

In 2008 WFTISA celebrated Nelson Mandela’s 90th Birthday. This year we join ACTSA (Action for Southern Africa) in celebrating the 50th year of the organisation. The origion of WFTISA was inspired by ACTSA’s campaign to “Help the people of South Africa Reap the Fruits of Freedom”

Fees

Our objective is to assist young people at Thuto Lesedi Secondary School, in South Africa, to gain education so that they can “reap the fruits of freedom.” We seek sponsors to support orphans and poor children at the school. £30 a year pays school fees and buys essential books. Donations help to provide much needed food.

Since the beginning of the academic year in January 2009 new sponsors have helped to increase the number of pupils whose fees are paid from 30 to 50.

In 2008, 11 sponsored pupils completed Matriculation. One of them, Ntebaleng is currently at university. WFTISA provided a one-off grant to help her pay registration and tuition fees while she was seeking Scholarship support.

In April 2009, I (chair of WFTISA) went to Thuto Lesedi, during my annual visit to South Africa. The sponsored pupils I met asked me to convey their appreciation of the support they receive.

I noticed that some were no longer as sad and lethargic looking as they had been when I first met them some two or three years ago. They were lively and motivated. Freely expressed their vision and goals for a future. For that, WFTISA thanks all those whose support helped to make that possible.

Food

In discussion, the head-teacher told me that benefit from the food program was that pupils were more attentive and engaging in class. There was energy in the school. In November 2008 the school had achieved the best Matriculation results in Gauteng Province. Press reports I read suggested that with 86% pass rate, some achieving grades A in science and mathematics, these were among the best in the country

The school has 1968 pupils. 220 have lunch provided, 140 also have food packs to cover after school meals. They are the most needy. Over the whole year in 2008, lunch cost £30, and a food pack £34.56 for each child. Teachers donate vegetables to be cooked for lunch. The Head Mrs Tlhakanelo told me that without help from WFTISA, the food program would not exist. Concern was that not all who needed help were getting it. Another 300 could benefit.

The recession related un-employment, and the unabated rise in the number of AIDS orphans, means more young people will need help.

Book and 10 pence

Our support for Community H.E.A.R.T’s “Book and 10 pence” appeal continues. In 2008 WFTISA collected 3,849 books for the project. Community H.E.A.R.T sends books to historically deprived schools.

During my visit to South Africa early this year, teachers confirmed my observation that there is still great need for donated books.