HISTORY

iThemba means “Hope”
The iThemba School Capricorn is a registered non-profit organization founded by the GTS Group in Cape Town in cooperation with HelpAlliance, a non-profit organization run by Lufthansa employees around the world.

We take responsibility for the communities we operate in. With the launch of the iThemba School Capricorn in 2009 we make an important stride towards developing and nurturing a future where education is a human right for all.

Our work is focused on helping 75 children in Capricorn, South Africa, to help themselves.

Give hope to the children of Capricorn
South Africa still suffers from the effects of Apartheid. In many impoverished townships throughout the country people are facing unemployment, HIV/ AIDS, drug addictions, domestic violence and crime. Many children have to grow up in this hostile environment, suffering economic and social deprivation. Without special schooling facilities these children have a limited chance to enter the broader South African schooling system – their key for a brighter future.

The iThemba School Capricorn bridges the educational gap for 75 children in the impoverished area of Capricorn, 20 km outside of Cape Town. It provides pre-primary children aged 3-6 with a safe and creative learning environment, where they can develop themselves. Emphasis is put on numeracy, literacy and healthy nutrition. The classes are thought in English to equip the young learners, who mainly speak the African language of their parents, for the ongoing South African school system.

Our iThemba Philosophy
We are determined to give the iThemba children an educational head start by facilitating the entry into a good primary school.
We provide:

• Early Childhood Education
• English Language Tutoring
• Healthy And Nutritious Meals 3 Times A Day

Together we can make a difference!
Give children the chance to get better education and become an iThemba Sponsor.

iThemba School Philippi (2006-2009)
In 2006 GTS Cape Town, in cooperation with HelpAlliance in Frankfurt and the local Lutheran Community Centre, launched the iThemba Pre-Primary School in Philippi - one of the most impoverished townships in Cape Town. Since the opening in July 2006 an annual average of 25 children aged between three and six were educated. As the school set-up in Philippi was not entirely conducive for the planned expansion, the GTS group started looking for suitable premises around Cape Town and established a new pre-primary school in the disadvantaged community of Capricorn.

“The pre-primary school in Philippi has been transferred and fully integrated into the well developed structure of the local Lutheran Community Centre who now runs the school under their own auspices. The children of iThemba Philippi will continue to benefit from the legacy left by GTS Group for many years to come.”