Bathande Childrens Reading Club
As many of you know my time in South Africa has been packed with lots of adventures and new friends. I want to share with you a project my coordinator and now friend Kholi has started in her community.
Anyone who knows Kholi will attest to her contagious laugh, sheer gratitude for life, and love of community. Kholi started the Bathande Children’s Reading Club out of her home in 2018 when she saw the need in her community, Khayelitsha, for kids to have somewhere to go on Saturdays when their parents went to work. For context, Khayelitsha is the largest and fastest growing township in all of South Africa with an estimated 2.4 million people. Khayelitsha is also one of the poorest areas of Cape Town, leaving many residents with no option, but to work long strenuous hours to make ends meet. This is where the Bathande Children’s Reading Club comes in.
Kholi saw many kids didn’t have a place to go on weekends, so she opened up her home to the kids in her neighborhood and starting reading to them. What started a small reading group has now grown to 30 plus kids showing up on any given Saturday. The Bathande Children’s Reading Club provides opportunities for fun memories, education, and leadership. I was lucky enough to join this past Saturday. While I was there Kholi shared with me her dream of transforming the reading club out of her home into a full afterschool program with an official classroom where she can serve snacks to all the kids who attend and expand her collection of books and materials. This is expensive and time consuming and Kholi runs the entire program herself.
I am reaching out to you for your help to make Kholi’s wish of empowering youth by providing them with the tools and inspiration to reach their full potential a reality. Your donations will go towards buying weekly lunches, books, and games for the kids who attend the book club. Any donation could help make an impact. Thanks in advance for your contribution to this cause.
