Can we build it? Yes we can!



Following the resounding success of our school in Phillipi, we also wanted to make a difference in the community of Vrygrond (suburb of Cape Town). With assistance from the Vrygrond Community Development Trust, we secured the site for the school in May of this year. And that’s when the blood, sweat and tears really started!

After much begging, to-ing and fro-ing, we finally got the council’s approval for the building, and work on the site began in earnest in August and September. After clearing the site, the contractors started their work. Fences were put up, the ground was levelled and electrical and waste services were put in.

As we moved from October through into November, the school and educare centre really started to take shape. The buildings have now been completely erected, and the plumbing has been put in. The council has come in to do its inspection, and thanks to the hard work of everyone involved, everything was up to standard and completed on time.

This is what iThemba is all about – the kids!

As another example of how fast time has flown by, we’ve already hosted a number of children and families at the school for enrollment. The process of identifying the school’s first intake of students was a really special occasion for all involved - especially for those who’ve seen the project through from scratch. We have also been successful at filling the positions of Principal Teacher and Pre-Primary Educator. We are very proud to have with us Veronica Nicholas, who brings with her 18 years of pre-school education experience. We also welcome Tania Arendse, who brings a range of educational knowledge from across the board. Please join us in welcoming them to the iThemba family!

An intern second to none!

For those of you who've been following the progress of the project on our blog, you'll recognize the name Josi. A student of business at Technical University Munich, Josi was with us for a seriously productive six weeks. Getting stuck in from day one, she was involved with almost every aspect of the planning and co-ordination of the project. To keep everybody in the loop with what was happening day-to-day on site, she wrote a fantastic blog (on our site, www.ithembaschool.co.za ), so make sure to check it out if you haven't already. And to Josi, a huge thank you for the amount of work and effort that you put into getting this project off the ground – we couldn't have managed without you!

To all of the sponsors that have come on board with us already, a massive thank you!!!!!!
We couldn't have got this far without all of your amazing support :)

We are happy to announce that Siegenia-Aubi KG is the main sponsor of the “elementary house”. It was constructed in conjunction with Consido AG using SwissCell Panels, a revolutionary new building material. The building has been donated to the iThemba School Capricorn and will be used to house the school security officer/janitor as well as for storage of garden equipment and playground toys.

     

Our fund-raising progress so far has seen us hit the R1-million mark, which is just amazing. Our goal for 2010 is to make sure that the school is running on a sustainable basis - to do this we need to raise a total of R2-million! Let's work on this together! 

What’s on in 2010 (besides the World Cup, of course!)

Next year promises to be a fantastic one for South Africa , and also for iThemba and the children of Vrygrond. Their first day of school will be the 13th of January 2010, and they can't wait!

Once everything is up and running smoothly, the official inauguration of the school will be on the 5 th of March. As a friend of iThemba, you're certainly invited, so please keep the date open in your diary!

Address: Lufthansa Global Telesales (Pty) Ltd. 9th Floor Picbel Parkade. Strand Street. Cape Town 8001, South Africa

For more information, visit:
www.ithembaschool.co.za
www.help-alliance.com
www.globaltelesales.co.za