Township Kids Get Extra Special Christmas Present

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A few weeks after their annual ‘Social Apprentice’ Programme, we were happy to receive news that two of the Wellington College students were coming back to sunny South Africa on holiday with their parents for Christmas. On receiving this news and the wish to spend a day with their Junior School of Excellence (JSE) buddies, we were more than happy to ensure that Rob and James could grant a Christmas wish and be reunited with their recently found buddies from South Africa, Odwa and Sinalo.

The two JSE boys were picked up early morning to spend the day with the Watters and Garvey families and the excitement was almost too much for our JSE boys as the day approached. The 22nd December finally arrived and the two groups of boys enjoyed a beautiful day together on the beaches of St Francis Bay, a coastal town situated midway between Port Elizabeth (PE) and Knysna. It was an active day filled with fun activities and memories that will be cherished forever. This was a first for Odwa and Sinalo who had never been outside of PE and certainly never had the chance to enjoy the luxury of speedboats and jet skis. The day culminated in a race on the beach which was won by Odwa and Sinalo, who were rewarded with medals in a fun ceremony at the end.

For the families, it was a great pleasure to have Odwa and Sinalo; as they expressed how well behaved the two JSE boys were. Rob and James had also been given letters and Christmas cards by their friends back home in England to pass on to their relevant South African buddies. It is great to see that the children are being pro-active in maintaining the friendships built on their tour.

We truly appreciate the effort the Watters’ and Garvey’s put in to making it possible for the boys to re-unite. The children in our programs are not fortunate enough to have such outings with their families, so it meant the world to these two boys. We hope it is a relationship that will continue into the future.

“Spending the day with my buddy was the best Christmas present ever because I thought I would never see him again. The year 2012 was a very special year to me.”- Sinalo Mazoko, JSE Beneficiary 2012

Our School of Excellence Buddies Up With Wellington College

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Once again, it was that time of the year when we had our annual visit from our good friends at Wellington College. For three consecutive years now, this UK school has been paying us visits as part of their ‘Social Apprentice’ Programme , where they spend a full week getting involved in our programmes and community projects associated with us.

The week of the 20th-28th October was filled with emotions, especially for the 30 children from Wellington on their first visit to South Africa. Upon arrival, our staff welcomed them in a truly South African manner; a braai (South African barbeque) and traditional dancing in the evening. The Wellington staff found it very entertaining to watch some of the kids try their hand in some Zulu and Xhosa dancing, which was a sight for sore eyes for the rest of the group! With the excitement buzzing about the packed week ahead, the group, unlike us, was not very bothered about the gloomy weather they brought from England.

In order for the group to appreciate the opportunity presented to them in this tour, they had to have a true sense of what a typical life looks like for the average South African. Their first working day started off with a visit to our Junior School of Excellence (JSE) where they had a warm welcome from the teachers as well as a tour of the school. This was rather eye-opening as this school was nothing compared to the school life they are used to. Some of the most evident differences were the underdeveloped sports grounds and lack of facilities such as school library, gym, cafeteria, art, science, music departments etc. After the tour of the school, it was time to see some of the living conditions of the children; a township tour that included the history of the townships of Port Elizabeth. Driving and walking around the townships, the kids got to witness the poverty in South Africa they often hear about in the media. With the heavy rains in the weeks leading to this visit, the group saw the damage the floods had done and the distraught families in the informal settlements with flooded shacks.

The afternoon was full of excitement as the Wellington kids met their buddies for the week from the JSE and relationships were built. The children demonstrated to us the power of youth by immediately bonding with their buddies and casting all social and cultural differences aside. In their pairs, the kids got involved in different activities for the remainder of the afternoon. Included in these activities was the painting of the soon to be Computer / Library Room at the JSE as well as painting some pillars at the school with Wellington’s 8 aptitudes approach to education and wellbeing of children. The following two days were spent camping in the wild, where the Wellington group learnt some survival skills. For the rest of the week, the Wellington group got involved in community projects we are linked with, such as Zama after school club and Khayalethu Haven for street children; spending a lot of time assisting disadvantaged children. The working week ended off with a day outing for all the buddies. All 60 kids were taken bowling and enjoyed a rugby match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium; which was built specifically for the FIFA 2010 World Cup. The bowling was a first time experience for the JSE children, as was the stadium experience for most of them.

The final touch for the Wellington group was the unexpected send-off as their buddies surprised them at the airport to bid them farewell. As emotional as it was, everyone was happy to have met and made new friends that would forever remain in their memories.

We’d like to thank Neil Lunnon and his team for all the fundraising done for UTS, and for bringing us yet another delightful group of Wellington scholars! We look forward to hosting next year’s group and maintaining the great relationship built with Wellington over the past few years.

“The relationship with Wellington is so multifaceted, we get such a combination of fantastic results, not only do the children build great relationships and broaden their horizons to whole new worlds, not only does our JSE benefit from the skills and knowledge transfer from Wellington, but the children benefit from new facilities and scholarship options due to the funds raised by the Wellington children”, Nosipho Xapile, Programme Manager, United Through Sport.

Dutch Hockey Team Visit South Africa

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On the 07th August 2012, United Through Sport was pleased to host Were Di Tilburg, a Dutch Hockey team on a South African tour. A total of 39 people were with the group; which consisted of two girls’ teams and the coaching staff.

The girls had been on tour for a few days before visiting our organisation and had been playing against some of the best schools in the country. Our visit would be slightly different for the girls though; we would give them some insight to the less fortunate areas of our country; get them to mingle with children in disadvantaged schools, do some coaching with them and exchange cultural values and beliefs.

Before getting to the Junior School of Excellence (JSE) for a coaching clinic, we took the group on a township tour, which included a visit to a local museum and a visit to a “Sangoma” (an African traditional healer). A couple of the girls and staff got dressed up in the Sangoma dress code, which was quite a beautiful sight and an awesome experience for them!

At the JSE the Dutch players got involved in mentoring session where the girls taught the kids some Dutch songs and games and had a good time; learning a bit more about their backgrounds. The girls were a bit emotional and really had a heart-warming session with the kids, they came out of the session with a different perspective on life; they all seemed to be on a mission to complain less and appreciate more in life as their eyes were opened up to the hardships people face daily within our communities. At the end of the session, lunch was served for everyone and the girls moved on to the second part of the coaching before their matches with the Gelvandale semi-professional hockey teams.

The last part of the day before the matches was coaching at the Gelvandale hockey turf, which the girls enjoyed very much and got them ready for their matches later that evening. The atmosphere was amazing at the clubhouse, with the Dutch players feeling right at home hearing Afrikaans, which is very similar to Dutch! Were Di Tilburg junior girls won their game while the senior took a beating from the local team. The presentation after the matches was an amazing time for both teams to bond. Gifts were exchanged and the two clubs wished each other well and good relations were built, in the hope of crossing paths again in the near future. The relationship has now inspired the Gelvandale Hockey Club (a team made up of players from previously disadvantaged backgrounds) to aim to tour Holland in 2014.

A few weeks after the visit, we were happy to receive 9 pallets of boxes of hockey equipment and kit that Were Di Tilburg donated to us, including 900 hockey sticks and 120 tracksuits. The teams had started with collecting the donations and raising funds before their departure, so that the shipment could arrive soon after their visit. United Through Sport is thrilled at the start of the relationship and hopes it will continue long into the future.

“The children we met today had so little and yet they were so happy and friendly and welcoming to us. It’s definitely taught me about appreciating what I have and being kinder to others”, Dutch Player, Were Di Tilburg.

Youth Day Celebrations in South Africa

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To celebrate Youth Day, we held an event on 15th June in partnership with Love Life and Letsema Circle at the Jabavu Rugby Stadium in Kwa-Nobuhle, Uitenhage. The Department of Health, Education, Home Affairs were also involved on the day, with stations set up for Diabetes testing, High Blood Pressure and HIV/AIDS testing (DoH), and birth registration and ID registration (DoHA). Ten schools from the community were invited to the event and our volunteers were happy to get a feel of what other organisations do.

Opening the event were performances by the youth of Kwa-Nobuhle, including traditional dancing and musicals based on the history and the meaning of June 16. This was also very educational to our international volunteers; getting the deeper meaning and importance of their involvement on this day. The theme of the event was centred on bridging the gap between the youth and their parents, where the parents are of support to the youth. The youth were to enjoy the activities planned, together with their parents, engaging in sport and educational programmes.

Dialogue was opened between the adults and the young people on topics affecting youth in society. Issues such as peer pressure, the difference in generations and times that affect the parent-child relationship were discussed in groups. Options for a channel of communication between the child and the parents were discussed as it was discovered that this was a prevalent problem in the community. We know firsthand how most of the children in our programmes are too scared to approach their parents with their problems and prefer to talk to our life skills coaches instead. The Love Life team also had an open discussion on the challenges of youth as well as information sharing on career guidance.

On the sports side of the event, we were doing what we know best; engaging 104 young people in sports and life skills activities, using the Yputh Development through Sports (YDS) toolkit to discuss HIV/AIDS. The children were ecstatic to have such fun activities which catered for their age group, compared to the norm of listening to speeches all day long. They also got to watch two soccer matches; one of which being a ladies game. Also organised was a boxing bout and a taebo session.

The event had a total reach of 823 people. Love Life had 63 youth in their discussions and Letsema had a total of 53 taking part in their activities. The health department tested a total of 37 for HIV/AIDS and 51 for high blood pressure and diabetes. The department also distributed a total of 6000 condoms on the day. The department of home affairs had a total of 30 enquiries on the day, which were applications for identity documents and birth registration.

This event was a great success, especially since it was a first of its kind in this community. Our international volunteers were happy to experience such events that bring out the culture and history of South Africa. We received positive feedback from the community, with the wish of having more events like this. All partners in the event are happy to have been part of it and to have brought activities to the community of Kwa-Nobuhle to celebrate Youth Day.

“I had such a great time at the stadium, dancing and playing with the kids but also learnt a great deal about the struggles that South African youth went through.” – Stacey Watson, Football Coaching Volunteer from Canada.

Nike and Roger Federer Support UTS

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United Through Sport South Africa is proud to be one of the first 26 (NIKE)RED grant recipients. This fund is managed by the King Baudouin Foundation and aims to support our new Junior School of Excellence Program with a particular focus on the HIV / AIDS awareness life skills elements of the program.

As a fitting launch to the program Roger Federer Foundation (supported by Nike) also donated 500 t-shirts with “I am Tomorrow’s Future” written across the chest. The JSE has the sole purpose of developing these young children holistically, to give them a brighter future so the t-shirts were very apt.

With UTS being a sport based organisation, it is great to have support from Roger Federer and from Nike, which is by far the most popular sports brand in the township communities. Nike believes in the power of unleashing human potential, both on the field and in life; which is exactly what we strive to do in all our programs, making the relationship between UTS and (NIKE)RED a fitting partnership. The investment (NIKE)RED is making in our Junior School of Excellence will go a long way to realise the potential of our beneficiaries, grooming them to be tomorrow’s future.

UTS Drive Through 10 African Countries

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Today sees our man, Richard Bennett, venture out into the African Continent taking sport, health and educational messages to thousands of children.

Richard and his team of 5 will spend 6 months in two Land Rovers (very cosy) visiting 15 schools in 10 African countries, taking important life skill messages to kids through the powerful medium of sport.

Over the past week the team assembled, in Hertfordshire, for some intense training and bonding excercises. The team also got stuck into sorting out all the equipment that will be left with each African school along their visit, including rugby balls, pumps, cones, bibs, whistles and referee jerseys.

Jon Parry from Training Expertise, worked with the team, helping each member to become aware of different situations which could be potentially hazardous during the expedition. The activities gave the team an insight into proper care in remote locations, where sufficient medical assistance is sometimes not available.

The team were also able to spend valuable time with legendary Welsh International and British Lions full-back, JPR Williams, talking through the various elements of this year’s mission, where rugby and it’s values are so key to the delivery of the programme.

“As with all things, the preparation is very important, you’ve prepared very well for it. It’s quite exciting really, this all coming to fruition. We wish you all the best and our thoughts will be with you and let’s hope we can help the children of Africa to take on what is a great game of rugby union.”
JPR Williams

From all in the United Through Sport community we wish Richard a successful and sports fuelled trip. We believe this team truely have the power to touch the lives of many children and our thoughts go with them.

Keep coming back to our website to see updates on the team’s progress as they navigate their way through Africa

UTS vs Grassroot Soccer Match

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On Friday, 21st October United Through Sport South Africa were invited to play a friendly soccer match against our fellow NGO, Grassroot Soccer (GRS); who also use the power of sport to develop our youth and spread awareness about HIV/ AIDS. Having a staff on staff soccer match has become a customary activity between the two organisations and along with our kids playing in each other’s tournaments and our joint events, contributes to a strong relationship between us.

As both organisations host international volunteers throughout the year, each team is made up of local and international players as well as a combination of male and female players; ensuring sound fair-play! The match was held at the City Lads Grounds in New Brighton, which is the home ground for most of the staff at both organisations. So, even the venue gave each team a “home-advantage”!

Because a lot of the United Through Sport SA staff have previously volunteered at GRS and because of the close relationship between the two NGOs, it is always such an exciting game to watch ; with spectators cheering both teams on and torn between who they want to win. The United Through Sport South Africa Director, Nick Mould, was feeling a bit anxious this time around though; he was under the impression that his team might just struggle without him on the field, having scored two goals himself in his last game. With a 4-2 win, the United Through Sport SA staff showed Mr Mould that his boat can still sail well without its captain on board with United Through Sport Life Skills Coach, Shankie, scoring the two winning goals.

It is always great to maintain such relationships between organisations, especially since we all share a common vision and goal to develop the youth in our disadvantaged communities. Being a sport-based organisation, it is also important for the United Through Sport SA staff to socialise with colleagues from other NGOs on and off the field. If we work together, we should also play together! This also teaches the children the value of sharing and working with those around you, instead of competing for resources.

Volunteer Travels with National Rugby Team

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This July saw the West African rugby championship take place in Bamoko, Mali – and the Ghanaian National team was in full force along with guest coach, United Through Sport volunteer, Chris Morgan. Chris was invited to join the team in Mali by the team’s permanent coach, following some impressive coaching during training sessions with the national team in 2010.

Not only did Chris help coach the team to a respectable 4th place standing in the tournament, he also provided kit which was donated from the UK.

Chris, who is currently a student at Loughborough University, first visited Ghana last year but was unable to participate in the 2010 tournament, then being held in Niger. But on learning that Ghana qualified for the 2011 championship Chris leapt at the invitation to join them in Mali.

Despite problems with fitness Chris was pleased with the performance of the team against undoubtedly more experienced rivals. Chris said “It has been a great experience for me, it’s not everyday you get to coach a national team in any sport, and it has been a real eye opener into the workings of a national team!”

Other participating countries were Benin, Niger, Burkina Faso, Chad, Togo and host country Mali.

Please contact us if you would like to know more about our rugby project in Accra, Ghana.

SESSA and UTS join forces

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On the 24th June, United Through Sport were warmly welcomed by members of the Southern England Students Sports Association (SESSA), in celebrating their 50th anniversary at The Royal College of Surgeons.

This was also the official lauch of the partnership between United Through Sport and SESSA to encourage students from around the South East to participate in more sport whilst contributing to the work of the charity.

After speeches from United Through Sport and SESSA a few glasses of champagne were consumed and a chance to network was taken full advantage of.

United Through Sport look forward to developing this relationship and getting sport to a wider group of sports mad people!

Who Are SESSA
The Southern England Students Sports Association (SESSA) organise leagues, championships, cup competitions, knock-outs and one-day events in any sport.

The main purpose of SESSA is to provide Wednesday afternoon sport in all its forms for its members. They exist to enable as many people as possible to participate, and to play as much sport as they can provide, something that is also at the heart of United Through Sport.

If you are an educational post-16 institution, you are more than welcome to join SESSA as well as support the great work United Through Sport is doing around the world.

For further information on SEESA check out their website at www.sessa.ac.uk.

Bridgwater College Sports Tournament

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On the 31 March 2011, the New Brighton Oval hosted the Bridgwater United Through Sport South Africa Tournament organized and run by Bridgwater College.

Bridgwater College from the UK sent 40 of their Sports HMS students to South Africa. In conjunction with United Through Sport SA, they organised the sports tournament as a final event for their two week stay. The tournament consisted of 6 of the local previously disadvantaged schools in New Brighton and Zwide in Port Elizabeth.

Each school sent an U12 and U13 team for Rugby, Soccer, Hockey and Netball. The schools included Charles Duna, Molefe, Inkqubela, Ben Nyathi, Issac Booi and Emzomncane Primary Schools. On the day of the event there were many more than the estimated 480 children present and the students from both United Through Sport SA and Bridgwater were present. The sports teams were treated to an extremely well organized and fun tournament. Regardless of the light rain, both pupils and students had a lot of fun and each team played their best to win their games.

Overall Winners:
Rugby: U12: Issac Booi and U13: Inkqubela
Soccer: U12: Inkqubela and U13: Molefe
Netball: U12: Charles Duna and U13: Issac Booi
Hockey: U12: Charles Duna and U13: Ben Nyathi

On behalf of United Through Sport South Africa and the schools involved, we would just like to thank Bridgwater College for being so amazing and for hosting such a wonderful and successful tournament. The students brought so much joy to all the children involved and definitely made an impact on the youth at United Through Sport and all the organizations they visited. Thank you!