Shopping centres help learners put their best foot forward
The school shoes project is just one of many CSI initiatives each shopping centre undertakes each year.
While there is always a lot of hype around back to school and the needs of impoverished pupils in January, these children tend to be forgotten about later in the year.
But, after hearing about a number of schoolchildren at three primary schools in Munsieville who were going to school barefoot or wearing dilapidated shoes or takkies, STANLIB Direct Property Investments, the asset managers of the Liberty Property Portfolio, approached three of the Liberty shopping centres for help. The Sandton City, Nelson Mandela Square and Eastgate shopping centres made the decision to buy more than 1 000 pairs of school shoes for the children now, rather than wait for the start of the new school year.
The driving force behind the project is Munsieville community activist Maboshadi Lesego Mamathuba, who heads the Rutegang Munsieville Youth Organisation. The schools – Munsieville, Diphalane and Phatudi Primary Schools – are three of the seven schools Maboshadi has adopted. The organisation, which helps the schools with fundraising and supports the teachers and pupils through workshops, sourcing donations, sports and arts and culture activities, also supports orphaned and vulnerable children in the community. Maboshadi approached STANLIB for assistance when she saw the desperate need for new school shoes for a number of the pupils.
Representatives from the three centres recently went to Munsieville Primary School, where they met with representatives of each of the schools, to hand over 1 090 pairs of new school shoes. Sandton City donated 585 pairs of school shoes to pupils at Munsieville Primary School, Eastgate purchased 393 pairs for pupils at Phatudi Primary School and Nelson Mandela Square handed over 112 pairs to pupils at Diphalane Primary School.
The school shoes project is just one of many CSI initiatives each shopping centre undertakes each year. Sandton City is owned by the Liberty Group and Pareto, while Nelson Mandela Square and Eastgate shopping centres are owned by the Liberty Group. All three are managed by JHI Retail.
“At Sandton City and Nelson Mandela Square, we care about the community. We also place a great deal of importance on education, so when we heard about the destitute pupils in Munsieville, many of whom walk long distances to school, we knew we had to act immediately to help make their lives a little easier,” said Julie Hillary, general manager of the Sandton region of JHI Retail.
Johan van Belkum, general manager of Eastgate, agreed wholeheartedly, and said, “The plight of the pupils in Munsieville struck a chord in our hearts and we didn’t hesitate to get involved. Buying new school shoes may seem like a small thing but for a number of these children, many of whom have only ever worn hand-me-down shoes, it is a big thing that means a great deal to them.”
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