“It is winter time - here, have shoes!”

The school governing body for Tshikwarani Primary School in Madombidzha village realised that barefooted pupils would suffer the severity of the winter cold if they did not get shoes, so they decided to seek a donation of shoes from Kutama Sinthumule Correctional Centre (KSCC).

“It came to our attention that some pupils did not have proper shoes and that others even came to school barefooted,” said the SGB's representative, Mr Peter Liswoga. “We then approached the South African Custodial Management (who operates KSCC) for help. Today we are very happy to hand all these pairs of shoes to our children, so that they can feel like the other children when they come to school.”

Liswoga, the SGB's representative who had submitted the request to SACM, said that he understood very well the pain and frustration which pupils had to deal with when they had no shoes. “They feel out of place, and it is for us as parents, community members and even for businesses to help out these needy pupils,” he said.

In response to the SGB's request, the prison director, Mr Lazarus Ncongwane, delivered about 40 pairs of brand new shoes to the school on Friday morning for distribution to indigent pupils.

“It is always our joy to take our help to the places where we know that it is seriously needed,” Ncongwane said. “It's winter time – here, have shoes.”

After handing over the shoes, he remarked: “We want to believe that the gift of shoes means a lot to each learner. We were happy to assist the children and put a smile on their faces before the winter's adverse weather sets in, so that they can be and feel like other children. As part of our social responsibility programme, we wanted them to have a joyful experience when going to school. They showed great appreciation for our gesture of love and care.”

The school's principal, Ms Mukondeleli Kudzingana, expressed her gratitude to the SGB and SACM. “As the school, we really cannot do without your earnest assistance in many regards, mainly in cases where it concerns our pupils,” she said. “We are really humbled by this gesture of support. We want to thank SACM for the understanding which they showed when the SGB approached them for help.”

News - Date: 29 May 2015

Tshifhiwa Mukwevho

Tshifhiwa Given Mukwevho was born in 1984 in Madombidzha village, not far from Louis Trichardt in the Limpopo Province. After submitting articles for roughly a year for Limpopo Mirror's youth supplement, Makoya, he started writing for the main newspaper. He is a prolific writer who published his first book, titled A Traumatic Revenge in 2011. It focusses on life on the street and how to survive amidst poverty. His second book titled The Violent Gestures of Life was published in 2014.

Email: [email protected]