WITH six blocks of flats, Kirkwood Gardens on Mathews Meyiwa Road is home to some 20 children and several teenagers.
The Greyville low cost housing complex offers little in the way of entertainment for the community of children who end up playing soccer under the washing lines or digging bottles out of the trash for games of pretend-cooking.
Chairperson for the complex, Teresa Moriarty is appealing to the broader community to donate sport and gym equipment to uplift this lovable community of youth who call the complex home.
“All we have is a piece of tarmac, a broken set of swings on one side and another broken set of swings on the other side. That’s all the children have to play with,” she said.
Moriarty said a previous tenant at the complex had gym equipment which he had shared with the community. Since he left, the teens have been left with nothing to continue their fitness training.
“I saw the teenagers doing gym outside with the weights and it attracted so many youngsters in that age group. Gym is something the teens love and the children will look up to them. The teens can teach them and train them. They also love soccer and cricket- it keeps them active and healthy,” she added.
Resident personal trainer volunteers to help
Resident, Yolanda Mdletshe who is a qualified personal trainer, said she wants to design a free fitness programme for her community. All she needs is some basic equipment to get the programme off the ground.
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“I could design a programme where we train the children in different kinds of sports. The teenagers love to do fitness training. For the adults, we could do a Zumba boot camp. It would keep us all active and we would come together as a collective. It would help the children to be more disciplined, active and healthy, both physically and mentally,” she said.
On her wish list are soccer balls, netballs, music speakers for a Zumba class and gym equipment.
“I’ve lived here for 19 years. When you grow up, you observe things. As I am a teenager now, I can see the young children need things to play with. At the moment, they play here under the washing lines which makes the clothes dirty. They also take bottles from the trash and play, pretending they are cooking,” she said.
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Sport over substance abuse
Mdletshe said sport and gym would also foster healthy habits in the community and draw teens away form substance abuse.
“We do have a problem here in the community where teenagers get involved with substances. We go outside and meet people who say, ‘here take this,’ and peer pressure comes in. Sport shows us to achieve good things and become a better version of ourselves,” she said.
Siphumelele Mdunge (19), who lives in the complex said: “I speak for my sisters and the younger children. They really do like to come outside and play, but the lack of equipment stops them coming outside.”
Her mother, Hlengiwe Makhye said they have lived at the complex for 20 years.
“As a mother, I can see we defiantly need a space for the children to play. There is a space for gym, but no equipment,” she added.
Another resident, Zipho Sithole, lives at the complex with her 15-year-old son, Khwezi Sithole.
“Gym equipment will really be appreciated. Instead of going out, the youth can stay safe at home,” she said.
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