Blind swimmer goes the extra mile for Mamelodi school
Blind Midmar swimmer gives cash to Mamelodi school.
Pupils at the Pula Difate Primary School in Mamelodi gawked in amazement when blind councillor Hentie Nortje slowly shuffled onto the school stoep to explain that he had raised a R5 475.25 donation for the school by swimming the Midmar Mile.
“I come from Lynnwood, Pretoria. I am blind, but I love long distance swimming. When I started working as a councillor in Mamelodi, I heard of Pula Difate Primary School with all its positive teachers and learners. This positive attitude of the teachers and learners impressed me so much that I decided to swim my 15th consecutive Midmar Mile to raise money for your school. I completed this race successfully on 7 February. I have come here today to hand over a symbolic cheque for the money I raised to your principal,” he told the children.
The donation was warmly received by the 600 pupils gathered in the courtyard. Nortje said being impaired, he was aware of children attending schools where amenities were often sadly lacking.
“As Democratic Alliance councillor of this area, I see it as my duty to do as much as possible for the people in my ward. There are often situations where your duty and your private compassion coincide. This is one of them,” he said.
Nortje said swimming the Midmar Mile was not easy. “In this last Midmar Mile swim, I was accompanied by my children. To swim straight they coached me with calls like ‘left’ or ‘right’ and then I swam as they directed,” he told Rekord.
He explained that he was not involved with the collection of the cash. “This is done through an organisation called Back a Buddy. You tell them what cause you wish to collect for and they do the promotion. They obviously take a small percentage for the work they do, but at the end of the day you manage to raise money for your project.”
Nortje said during the handing over ceremony of the ceremonial cheque he really appreciated it when one of the youngsters came forward and thanked him on behalf of the school.
“My message to the children was that you can reach all your goals in life if you are prepared to work hard and if you are always disciplined. Always give your best,” he said.
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