Imagine.nation making charitable progress

The Sandton Chronicle week ending 15 April, introduced imagine.nation, a voluntary association which is trying to improve the education of the underprivileged by revamping creches.

Sandton-based imagine.nation members, founder Mandy Benjamin, Joni Muchnick, Maxine Gray and Taya Howell have been working at Boitshepo Crèche in Lanseria and completely transformed it from a dilapidated building to a fully-fledged, child-friendly crèche.

Benjamin said, “Building schools has been a long-term dream for my brother Dean and me. We grew up in the small town of Parys in the Free State where there were many underprivileged families and where many children went to school with less than optimal learning facilities. Our parents have always taught us to help others.”

On 16 April, the new Boitshepo Creche was visited by imagine.nation to host an opening morning. Benjamin said, “We brought treats for the kids to enjoy, played games all morning and taught the children how to use some of the educational toys donated. We are lucky to be surrounded by people who support our work and our friends came out in hordes to make posters for the new classes and donate old and new toys as well as educational books.”

Benjamin said that she learnt how to be charitable from her mother. “My mother would always give lifts to children walking to school from the township, often making two trips if she spotted children still walking on her way home [after] dropping us at school. Our dad has been a Rotary president for many terms as well,” explained Benjamin.

She said that she firmly believes that the only way to move our country forward, is to focus on education. Imagine.nation aims to build four more creches by the end of 2016.

Benjamin ended off by quoting Nelson Mandela, “Education is the most powerful weapon with which you can change the world.”