Thursday, July 18 marked the 10th anniversary of Mandela Day and to honour this momentous occasion the Adopt-a-School Foundation partnered with the Cyril Ramaphosa Foundation, FeverTree Consulting, Premier Optical, McDonalds, Triviron and Anglo-Gold Ashanti in a collective commitment to education and early childhood development.
This was in the form of a unique day of various projects running concurrently at Olifantsvlei Primary School in Eikenhof.
Steven Lebere, the Executive Director of the Adopt-a-School Foundation, said the Back to School for a Day initiative goes beyond just an annual day of action.
“It encourages citizens to become involved in improving education on a sustained basis. This day will help improve the physical environments where children learn, grow and develop to reach their full potential.
“Whether its painting the walls, planting food gardens or fixing broken furniture- this day is about rolling our sleeves and lending a hand to make a difference,” said Lebere.
The day started with the refurbishing and painting of the grade R facilities while a fence was also erected around the school and eye tests were taking place for the learners.
The project goes beyond just 67 minutes and is a three-month long partnership with the school.
Learners were jubilant and enjoyed a fun, jam-packed day full of jumping castles and other entertainment. Maps Maponyane, KNaomi, Zulu Mkhathini, Oros Mampofu and several other celebrities and television personalities were spotted joining the festivities. McDonalds food packs were handed out with the assistance of the Miss SA Top 16 finalists to ensure that everyone was well-fed and hydrated throughout the day.
First Lady, Dr Tshepo Motsepe, joined in to support the sustainable action for education after a busy morning at a creche in Diepsloot.
She spoke about other projects that will be run throughout the month, including a partnership between the Early Care Foundation and Sector Education and Training Authorities to assist and train creche owners in running their pre-schools thus prioritising early childhood development.