Mother Teresa, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, once said: “It’s not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving. At the end of life we will not be judged by how many diplomas we have received, how much money we have made, how many great things we have done. We will be judged by: I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat, I was naked and you clothed me.”
While other matrics spent their time shopping for the right outfit for their matric farewells, learners of Helderberg High School decided to use the funds they raised for their matric farewell to make a difference in the lives of others.
After deputy head girl Thoko Tshabalala followed the news of the Covid-19 pandemic during the lockdown, she realised many households do not have something to eat after most of the breadwinners lost their jobs.
“The effect of the pandemic and the lockdown made me realise that things are critical. I thought of ideas to help the poorest of our community and shared this idea with our head girl, Jamie Adams,” Tshabalala enthusiastically related.
According to Adams, the duo put their heads together and came up with an idea that would change people’s lives and also make a difference in their own lives.
“As the Covid-19 pandemic put a spanner in our plans for a matric ball, we decided to use the money and make food parcels that we will distribute in the informal settlements in Gordon’s Bay,” said Tshabalala.
This idea became a reality on Saturday 31 October, when a group of matric learners gathered and handed out the food parcels. The joy was clearly noticeable on the faces of the recipients and they could not wait to open the package to see what it contained.
“The recipients’ gratitude makes it worthwhile not to have a matric farewell. I am glad we decided to use the money to enrich people’s lives,” said one of the Grade 12 learners.
