Nova Pioneer’ staff trek to Mount Kilimanjaro for good cause
ROSEBANK – A group of teachers and staff from Nova Pioneer have achieved the feat of climbing the highest mountain peak in Africa.
A group comprising teachers and staff from Nova Pioneer recently made the 5 895m ascent up the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro in support of their Kilimanjaro 4 The Kids (K4TK) fundraising initiative.
Nova Pioneer, an emerging network of private schools in South Africa and Kenya, launched the initiative in July as a way to build on its existing commitment to prepare the next generation of innovators and leaders to thrive in the 21st Century. More than $30 000 [about R413 000] was raised for innovative science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Stem) programmes and scholarships with the climb.
The funds raised will support the Innovation Fund, which, according to chief of staff at Nova Pioneer, Taylor Stockton, and will provide students with the opportunity to follow their passions for Stem and innovation.
The second initiative is the Scholarships Fund which will provide financial assistance to high-performing students – with a particular focus on students who show an aptitude and passion for Stem fields.
Stockton, who is a resident of Rosebank, was among the staff members to brave the elements en route to completing the six-day ascent up Kilimanjaro from 22 to 26 October.
“The climb was extremely challenging. I think we prepared physically and mentally as well as we could have, but yet despite that, it seemed like we could never fully prepare for the types of obstacles that we faced while on the mountain,” said Stockton.
Frigid temperatures, heavy rains and high altitude were just some of the factors that Stockton said made it difficult to complete the climb. “On the second day, there was torrential rain nearly the entire eight hours of our climb and so all of our clothes were soaked, which contributed to it being more freezing, which made the climb on that day more difficult.”
Nova Pioneer’s chief executive officer, Chinezi Chijioke expressed gratitude to those who supported the initiative. Chijioke said, “It has been a tremendous joy to see the level of support we have received for K4TK from far and wide across South Africa, Kenya and beyond.
“We embarked on this journey as a way to symbolise the heights to which we are committed to supporting our students and now that our team reached the highest point on the continent, we are eager to bring those student initiatives to life.”
Lesang Sebaeng, an educator at Nova Pioneer South Africa added, “Summiting Mount Kilimanjaro was for me a challenging feat for many reasons, in which the most powerful moment was our team realising that in order to achieve this common goal, we needed each other.
“I was inspired by the willingness of all team members and our guides to sacrifice their comfort in order to help a teammate. I can’t wait to bring this message of unity and teamwork back to our students.”
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