About an orphan
Let me tell you a little story about Mandla (not his real name). He is 15 years old and is in Grade 3 at school. His classmate’s average age is eight. He is a lovely boy: “very sweet natured, responsible and enthusiastic” according to his teacher. Unfortunately she says that she has not seen him for the past couple of months. Yesterday he arrived for a meal and one of the Common Threadz mentors, Sbu, shared his story:
Mandla lives with his very old grandfather. There is no breadwinner in the house so there is no money, not even for food. His grandmother lives far away and the last time they saw her she took Mandla’s school uniform away with her…he does not know why. This meant that Mandla could not show his face at school and is left with just the one pair of pants that he wears every day.
Mandla says he desperately wants to finish school – he started school late as he was sent to look after the cattle. I approached the school who said that he was welcome to come back, even if he does not have a uniform. He will be promoted to Grade 4 next year. He is embarrassed to go back and says the other children will tease him. However with much encouragement and Sbu emphasizing how important education is, he has gone back to his class today…watch this space!
Karen
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