“The Lord was good to us,” were the words of Mac van den Berg, Principal of Eagle’s Nest Christian School during the school’s fun-filled celebrations of its 21st year on Saturday.
The day was celebrated with fun netball, soccer, volleyball and jukskei matches between parents, teachers, legends and learners.
Not to tire out the older participants, netball matches were kept to five minutes a side with no half time and soccer matches to nine minutes a side, with no half times.
Stalls selling impala-potjie, pap and sheba or chakalaka, hotdogs, chilli bites, popcorn, face painting and hair spraying, cool drinks, lucky packets, bubble toys, pancakes and Eagle’s Nest school memorabilia such as caps and umbrellas, key rings and water bottles made for good retail therapy for those wanting to dodge the participation in the sport events. At lunchtime the air was filled with the delicious smell of braaivleis and pap for those who wanted to indulge.
The sports events were followed by a prize giving at around 15:00 and the day was ended with a closing prayer by Zhak Maloney, Vice Principal.
Van den Berg said the school started in 1995 at 65 Burger Street with 32 learners. The following year the school moved to Agapé Centre, and then to the Dutch Reformed Church in Betz Street.
“In 1998 we moved to this premises after having bought the land and Pietersburg Hoërskool donated seven temporary classrooms to us, and today we have more than 40 classes and with 674 learners, a hostel with accommodation for 140 learners as we have learners from all over the country as well as Zimbabwe and Botswana, these sport grounds, and we are growing every year. We built our classrooms with cash, we manufactured our own bricks if we needed to and we now have 54 personnel members, except for the hostel personnel, and eight student teachers,” Van den Berg informed. “We have a pre-school, foundation phase, intermediary phase and college.”
He said the school is built on three pillars – education, outreach and prayer. The learners write the Independent Education Board exams and learners go on outreaches, delivering water in drought-ridden areas, visit drop-ins and hospitals regularly and take fruit and vegetables from the Foundations of farming section of the school, which also supply the hostel. Staff do training in Congo and Nigeria and the school is part of the Association of Christian Schools International, of which there are 20 000 members worldwide.
Van den Berg himself is a founder member and Deputy Secretary of the Limpopo Independent Schools Association.
Eagle’s Nest can also boast about building three pre-schools in Zimbabwe and doing outreaches to Zimbabwe, Zambia and other African countries once a year. They supply parents and learners with prayer calendars and each week a separate theme is taught at school, such a diligence, respect, commitment and so forth. They are also prayer partners with missionaries in other countries.
“Our vision is to develop and enable Christian learners,” Van den Berg said.
Hoof foto: Elsa and Mac van den Berg, Vice Principal and Principal at Eagle’s Nest Christian School, the wind beneath the Eagles’ flight.
NELIE ERASMUS
>>nelie.observer@gmail.com
