Tshwane pupils get school kit

Children of the Leamogetswe Safety Home in Atteridgeville, west of Pretoria, were yesterday pleasantly surprised with new school uniforms, shoes, stationery and laptops to start the 2018 school year – all thanks to the Tshwane council.

Councillor Christo van den Heever said it was the council’s responsibility to look after its residents, especially the children.

“Kids have a very special place in our hearts because they are the future of our country,” he said. “We need to look after them, especially those kids in need.

“They have so much potential. Four of them who were previously helped are at university now. If you care for them, they will become whoever they want to be, but they need the opportunity and that is what we are giving them.”

Leamogetswe is a nongovernmental organisation established in 1984. Staff at the home look after 120 abandoned, abused, and HIV/Aids-positive children, from infants to those aged 18. They are assisted with school work and meals.

Van den Heever said education was a vital tool for succeeding in the contemporary world and was essential for all people.

“I urge you to study hard and make a success of yourself. Take this opportunity and fly with it. It is your responsibility to be the greatest version of yourself and to pay it forward to others,” he told the children.

He said they had written to the MMC of housing and human settlement to look into and address the home’s municipal bill for water and electricity and the lease contract between the city and the home.