A building project for an indoor sports centre at Saheti School finally received the green light.

This was demonstrated through a soil turning ceremony on June 8 at the school courts.

Gary Ttappous, chairperson of the Saheti Board, shared that over the past two and a half years, there has been extensive planning, research, and consultation, resulting in a new building design intended to take Saheti into the future.

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He thanked everyone who contributed to making the project possible, noting the significant time, effort, and commitment invested in bringing the vision to life.

He added, “Stone is symbolic and represents that we not only want our centre to be hard and longstanding, but for our children to build on it. Saheti is built on the philosophy of educating the child holistically, and this is the mission today.”

Executive head Morag Rees said, “As we turn the sod today, we don’t just celebrate the beginning of a construction project, but the beginning of countless future opportunities for learning, growth, achievement and community.

“Sport teaches lessons that cannot always be learned in classrooms. It teaches discipline, commitment, courage and humility. It teaches young people how to win graciously and lose with dignity. It develops leadership, character and perseverance. These are qualities that serve our learners not only on the sports field but throughout their lives.”

Over the coming months, Rees said the learners would have the unique opportunity to witness the entire process of creation.

They would watch engineers solve complex challenges, observe builders and craftsmen transforming plans into a huge reality. They would see how mathematics, physics, design, technology and creativity come together in the real world, in an amazing project,

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“They will learn that remarkable achievements do not simply appear. They are imagined, conceptualised, planned, budgeted, engineered and then pertinently built with care.

“They will see that every wall, every finish, is a result of expertise, collaboration and hard work. Hopefully, while witnessing this process, they will know to apply the same to their own lives,” expressed Rees.

Ivor Crabia, deputy chair of the Saheti Board and chair of the Saheti built environment and projects committee, expressed excitement at seeing the sense of ownership around the sports centre. He said the school community looked forward to drawing on that resource and enthusiasm.

Peter Valasis, co-founder of Atmos Architecture and Design, said he and his sister, Joanne Valasis, also a co-founder, felt privileged to have been appointed to complete the Saheti Sports Centre design.

Joanne said they basically grew up in Saheti from nursery school up to matric. “We’re both from a sportsman family, and grew up playing on these sports grounds, so it’s quite a full circle moment for us to come to our school and work on the sports centre.”

Neville Marle, Saheti Board secretary and member of the Saheti built environment and projects committee, commended the structure for being under a roof, with great opportunities to play during the rain, something he said they had not been able to do before.