Kwa-Thema – Sibongile Choba (45), a mother of three, has been the Kwa-Thema Society for the Care of the Aged manager since July.
She is also the chairperson of the Local Drug Action Committee structure locally and provincially.
The committee works to combat drug-related problems and is the closest body to the community.
It comprises individuals from various stakeholders at different levels who co-ordinate activities aimed at the prevention of substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking in the communities.
“The initiative aims to fight drugs by creating awareness about the issue. We educate the public about the effects and disadvantages of drugs and try by all means to get help for those who want to quit drugs through rehabilitation centres,” Choba said.
She also said she is the deputy chairperson of the Duduza Prototype ECD Centre. She is a true believer in community work.
She said her love for community work developed when she was in university studying for her business administration qualification.
As part of the qualification, she had to dedicate her time to community work.
“As part of my community work, I was offered a platform to make a difference at my former high school in Duduza. I gave motivational talks, life skills advice and mentorship and offered money management skills to the learners.
“I planted a seed in every leaner I mentored mainly because they were not exposed to a positive mindset,” Choba said.
She said her course programme was incorporated into an entrepreneurial programme in schools, where they had to mentor learners to devise a business idea and business plan.
“They were offered a platform to present what they had come up with, how the business would work and how it would sustain them. My team presented and won R2 000. Their win was an achievement and a seed I planted in those children’s lives. It furthermore boosted their morale,” she said.
Choba added that her course programme instilled a love for community work and moving forward, she knew she wanted to dedicate most of her time to community upliftment.
She worked for four years as an administrator at the Tshwaranang Elderly Day Care Centre in Duduza. She said working there allowed her to deal with many people daily, saying she dealt with different cases and personalities.
“Community has been my backbone. Without community work, I would not be where I am today. I grew up in a shack and went to a black school but maintained a positive attitude towards life because I did not want my background to define who I was or where I was headed,” she said.
She added that she is the first of 12 siblings to graduate in her family, saying people in her community laid a foundation for her hard work and overview of life.
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“My mother was my source of inspiration. She was a domestic worker yet a hard-working woman who knew what she wanted and respected herself.
“She indirectly taught me that hard work pays off. I saw her struggle and overcome most of those struggles. She taught each of us the importance of unity and determination,” she explained.
She said she would continue to dedicate her time to community work, citing that her dream is to develop the Kwa-Thema Society for the Care of the Aged into an old age home where elderly people would reside full-time.
“Many of our members have grown old and cannot get themselves to the centre, which is why I want to turn this place into an old age home. I want them to live happily and united,” she concluded.
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