Hi everyone,
As you might have read on a posting earlier this year, we were only able to assist 2 students from the greater Coffee Bay area to go and attend St Johns College in 2012. We would really like to change those statistics for 2013.
With the closest high school being 20km away from Coffee Bay and most families not able to afford the transport or boarding fees, many students do not go on to complete their schooling by doing grades 10, 11 and 12. It is so unfortunate that when there are academically inclined students, who do not have the means to complete their schooling, hence no further doors can really open for these children!
Earlier in the year, my colleague, Fanekhaya went and did motivational talks at 6 of the surrounding Junior Secondary Schools, and in early August it is time for us to return to these 6 schools and take applications for the St Johns intake for 2013. The schools that participate in the Scholarship Programme are Coffee Bay JSS, Pato JSS, Madakeni JSS, Mathokazini JSS, Xonyeni JSS and Mount Packard JSS – making that a total of about 450 grade 9 students!
The cost of giving a rural child an educational opportunity at St Johns College is R8000.00 per year. This amount can be split among a group of friends, a sports club, an office club or even a family. Please speak to your friends, colleagues and family and see if you guys can play a part in changing the future of a Coffee Bay child. Please contact me on happysdays@sustainablecoffeebay.org.za if you would like further information on this high prioroty project.
I look forward to having a busy inbox.
Dawn and the future St Johns Students