Greenwood Park Primary School gives the gift of mobility

WHEN Greenwood Park Primary School educator Jill Booley started a collection of bread tags and bottle caps for non-profit organisation (NPO), The Sweethearts Foundation, late last year, she could not believe the support from the community, learners, educators, fellow schools and parents.

In just six months, Greenwood Park Primary School was able to collect enough tags and caps to reach a milestone target.

Last week, the national NPO, which collects tops and tags, recycles them and then purchases bespoke wheelchairs, donated a wheelchair to the school.

Booley, who is passionate about recycling, explained how the collection began.

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“Towards the end of last year, I attended a workshop where I learned about recycling and I also learned about an organisation called The Sweethearts Foundation. It was there that I decided to begin a collection of bottle caps and bread tags and spread the word through the learners, staff, parents and the community via WhatsApp groups. The response was overwhelming, and I remember being so excited after bagging and weighing our first bag.

“It weighed only 8kg, and in order for the NPO to get a wheelchair, it’s required to be more than 1 000kg. I did not despair in that moment and decided to forge ahead and keep on collecting as much as possible. We also had local companies and schools, including Virginia Preparatory School and Northlands Primary School, donate, and within six months, we were able to achieve the target,” she said.

Booley added that the wheelchair, which was donated to the school, will now be used for the benefit of the community.

“We’ve told our learners that if they know someone from the community, and need to access a healthcare facility or go somewhere for the day, that they would be able to approach our school and borrow it. We are now excited to announce that we’ve begun a second collection for a second wheelchair which we will donate to an organisation or individual in our area who needs one,” she said.

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Sue Martin, a volunteer for the NPO, commended the school on their efforts.

“The school was absolutely fabulous in their response. I reminded the learners that if each one of them could collect just a kilogram of bottle tops or bread tags, they would make a significant difference to our cause,” she said.

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