Performer Flo Mokale on rebuilding the foundation following break-in

Poet and performer Flo Mokale has found himself needing to rebuild his Flo Foundation after suffering a break-in where vital equipment was stolen last month.

“The sad thing is that it’s somebody that knows because they took laptops, printers, laminators, cameras…all of these things were hidden, but they also took the kits, the netball and soccer kits,” a dejected Flo told The Citizen.

The Flo Foundation, founded in 2018, is an organisation based in Katlehong that works with the youth and learners.

Flo runs the foundation from his own pocket and with minimal generous donations from family, friends or associates.

He runs programmes in sports and arts including soccer, netball, photography, chess and poetry programmes. He is assisted on a volunteer basis by other inspired young adults in the community.

“The reason I started the Flo Foundation was because I saw that a lot of young, talented, curious and adventurous kids in the township had no access or places to express themselves or access to people who do different art forms,” he said.

“Being the person I am, who is involved in the sectors that I’m involved in, I decided that I will try to inspire because I believe inspiration inspires. Those who are inspired can inspire others,” shared the artist.

The foundation started doing its work in Sharpeville, then went to Alexandra and now is in Katlegong -these are all the places where Flo has resided.

To rebuild, Flo has created a BackaBuddy campaign to raise funds to replace the items lost in the break-in.

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Community impact

“My reason was to impart the art forms that I’m part of. Bringing celebrities to these kids just to show them that they can dream bigger, that anything they want they could access and dream beyond the sinking townships.”

He started by offering poetry and acting classes for kids in the township. “I used to have poetry competitions in the libraries and schools and also take them out on excursions, trips outside the neighbourhood to picnic and hikes,” he said.

Through these activities with the kids, Flo realised that not everyone is art-inclined. “Everybody has different forms of expression. Then we started with netball and soccer,” he said.

“The teams grew and then Covid hit. When Covid hit, everybody started pulling away because our funding came from close friends. The Flo Foundation is largely funded by me. Jobs became dry; art was not being bought. Libraries were closed and we couldn’t meet in groups” continued Flo.

Activities such as acting and show performances fell away during this time. “We concentrated on sports because we couldn’t even do our normal movie nights,” he said.

The mixed netball team has been a shining example of the success brought by the Flo Foundation.

Known as K1 Phoenix, the netball team is currently one of the top teams in both the Ekurhuleni Netball Association League and the Region F Junior Netball League.

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