St. Mary’s students impress Rotarians with Bambisanani Partnership Presentation
We are extremely proud of St. Mary’s Menston Year 13 students Holly Taylor and Freya Power who were invited to speak to the members of Rotary Club of Aireborough about their recent work in South Africa as part of The Bambisanani Partnership.
Holly and Freya with The club’s President Janet Appleton, Rotarians Graham Davies and Janet Kerr and St. Mary’s teacher Charlotte Wood.
Holly and Freya spoke articulately and passionately about their volunteering and the impact their time in Africa had on them and South African students. In their recent visit to South Africa, St. Mary’s students and staff worked with 14 different schools and more than 1,400 students in a range of Bambisanani sports, education and leadership programmes.
The Rotarians were very impressed by the two students and loved hearing their stories.
The Rotary Club of Aireborough, together with Eshowe Rotary Club in South Africa have supported the Bambisanani Partnership since the very first St. Mary’s School visit to South Africa 19 years ago. During that time more than 27,000 students from both countries have engaged in the various Bambisanani programmes and projects. The pioneering work of the partnership has gained international acclaim during that time. Rotary support has been instrumental in these programmes as well as with infra structure projects that have seen houses rebuilt and computers and clean water brought to South African schools. The very special relationship with Rotarians is helping to change lives in one of the most challenging regions of South Africa – it is also helping to bring young people together from both countries, promoting global citizenship and international friendships.
Well done to Holly and Freya – their powerful presentation inspired members of the Rotary Club of Aireborough and developed this very special relationship even further. Long may it continue!
Freya in South Africa
Freya Power
“Volunteering in South Africa as part of The Bambisanani Partnership was incredible and the best experience I have ever had. I have never been as happy as I was in those ten days. It has really changed my perspective and attitude towards many things in life. The love the children have for their education is truly inspiring and has made me appreciate my own education more than I ever have. South African children always try their best in everything they do and never give up despite the many challenges they face. There is definitely a lot that can be learned from these amazing children. As a musician myself, nothing could have prepared me for the pure talent of the singers in the choir at Mnyakanya High School. For me, the performances they gave were one of my highlights. I could see the pure passion and emotion they put into their singing and this is what made it so special. I think when they sang, it touched the hearts of many people. It was particularly emotional when they performed for us for the last time as everyone reflected on what a life-changing experience we had, but also that we had to leave all the wonderful people we had met. The singing of the Ntolwane Primary school children was also very touching. When we arrived, hundreds of children came together and created the most powerful sound which gave me goosebumps. I realised that singing is something that unites them and I think that is a very beautiful thing. Something that will always be imprinted in my mind is the pure joy we witnessed on the faces of so many children during our time there. To think we contributed to this is really special and something I will never forget. It was particularly touching time when we volunteered at Thembimfundo Special School, to see how happy the children were, despite the challenging circumstances they face, despite these they never stopped smiling and laughing. These children give me hope for humanity. I will be forever grateful that I had the opportunity to volunteer in Kwa Zulu Natal. Thank you Bambisanani.”
Holly in South Africa
Holly Taylor
“Volunteering in South Africa as part of The Bambisanani Partnership was the best decision I have made. Our time there helped me to better understand how different people from different cultures live their lives. Being able to have the opportunity to help the children at Mnyakanya High School was life changing for both us and them, being able to see the difference our volunteering was making was so special. I didn’t expect that in such a short time we would make such good friendships with all the students at Mnyakanya and that they would leave such a lasting impact on me. Being able to witness how they live their everyday school life and seeing how different it is to ours made me appreciate how lucky we are, even though sometimes we don’t appreciate it. Being able to sing, dance, play sports and help these children learn was such a once in a lifetime opportunity that I will never forget.”
