A daily afternoon aftercare programme in Mamelodi East received donations of two container libraries and 200 pairs of school shoes.

These donations were made through the Transnet Foundation and the Transnet National Ports Authority on Friday as part of a Corporate Social Investment.

Kate Kekana from the Thandanani Drop Inn Centre said the school shoes will be donated to the youth attending this aftercare programme.

The libraries will help schoolchildren in Ward 38 and neighbouring areas who are part of the aftercare programme, as well as school holiday programmes.

Kekana said the aftercare programme is designed to keep children safe, assist with schoolwork, and provide free meals while parents are at work.

“No more worries for underprivileged children whose parents cannot take them to preschool or [an] early child development centre.”

Kekana said the library containers, which also include books, will improve vocabulary, noting that some find reading and writing challenging.

She added that the centre also operates a community mobile toy and book library for underprivileged children and informal settlements, which also aims to support early development and after-school learning.

Kekana said the facility works with local and academic partners, including the University of Pretoria, to provide educational resources, care, and storytelling workshops.

“The community mobile toy library visits selected areas on a selected day of the week to prepare the underprivileged children before they attend school.”

The main aim is to provide them with a basic education before they attend Grade 1, she added.

“We have a team of volunteers from Thandanani who are prepared to teach the children basic education, like how to handle a pencil or pen, different colours and read the alphabet.”

Thandanani Drop Inn Centre, which has programmes dedicated to community upliftment, is a non-profit organisation founded in 2011 and was formally registered on May 3, 2013.

Nowadays, about 150 volunteers dedicate time and various forms of support to the centre, where programmes and activities address a multitude of socioeconomic issues of community members, ranging from young children to the elderly.

Do you have more information about the story?

Please send us an email to bennittb@rekord.co.za or phone us on 083 625 4114.

For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites: Rekord East

For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram or TikTok or WhatsApp Channel