With this background, giving back to the community has always been associated with the rich giving to the poor and for a reason other than genuine. However, it was not to be with a group of former students of St Joseph who operate under the name St Joseph ex-students association (St JESA) in Matobo district, Matabeleland South. The members of this group are neither rich nor operating a dodgy business as a collective. Some are still students at institutions of higher learning.
The association is made up former students of the school who are spread out all over the globe – as far as the United Kingdom. Their main target is to leave a legacy through making a difference in the society they call home. They have dug deep into their pockets, contributing financially to support the local school, church and clinic.
No drop outs
St Jesa has provided an oasis of relief in a desert of economic turmoil, taking a firm position that no school kid in the area will drop out of school due to lack of fees, uniforms or stationery. These former students mobilise each other and make contributions from as little as R1 a person to ensure that a needier person will benefit.
The association is calling on any willing donor and well-wisher to help achieve its plans to assist the only clinic in the area, St Joseph’s, with its ambulance that broke down some time ago.
Such remarkable work comes with a lot of sacrifice. No-one is employed full time to look after the association’s work and this means that individuals have to sacrifice a portion of their time to this. At times there are heated arguments in planning and operations meetings that one would swear that people would resign or just give up the work.
Moving forward
But the commitment goes beyond individual feelings and where differences emerge members just admit that they differ and move forward. With no liquid finances, the association has no budget for operational costs such as movement of members to meetings or even for lunch during these meetings. Such commitment has not only kept the association going but it has ensured that the St Joseph community is assisted in every way possible.
“The time for waiting for the government or the NGOs is over. It is time for the community to benefit from raising these members as their own children. We cannot fold our hands while the community suffers,” said the outgoing national chairperson of the association, John Makheyi Malaba.
I want to challenge any individual who wishes to support such an initiative to contact me and make a donation. Let’s work together and change our communities. – lancasterncube@gmail.com
Post published in: Opinions & Analysis