Kukunda Karekaho is awarded an Honours in Community Engagement
In grade 8 Kuku began her term of community service with Crewe House which prompted her to become an active member of the Interact Club. From the beginning of her time at school she spent a great deal of time interacting with the DSG community, waitressing at numerous events, organising tin collections at pick n pay and assisting at parent teacher meetings. Her steady involvement with community service activities and the Interact club prompted her to take on leadership roles within this service.
She is now the Head of Community Engagement and is in charge of providing DSG girls with the same opportunities which have allowed her to interact within and outside the DSG community. During her leadership she has organized, with the assistance of the Interact Board, fundraisers such as: the Swimathon; movie evenings; a dance marathon; the Kenton Fun Run; countless tuck shops; soccer Evenings; a bake-a-thon; clean ups; G-town Funk and Yellow Ribbon/Civvies days.
She has supervised community service hours such as the Old Age Home visits, SPCA visits, Saturday School, Home of Joy visits and the DSG Children's Staff camp.
She has served on the Interact board for the past two years and was a Youth Leader for the President's Award Youth Committee of Grahamstown. Being part of the Youth Committee required her to interact and correspond frequently with the Youth Leaders at other schools in order to organize events such as the Fun Day at Kingswood and the annual President's Award Fun run. It is through these board experiences that she has gained much experience which is evident in her powerful leadership. She is presently working on her Gold standard for the Presidents Award.
Kuku has also dedicated the majority of her club’s sessions to Community engagement activities such as Viv's Creche visits, knitting club, patch work, reading assistance and first aid level 1 course.
The activities that she has undertaken outside of DSG since grade 8 are: a couple of days at an orphanage in Kenya, a Hogsback Children’s Camp, lavender valley clean up, a day at settlers hospital and the St Matthews hike. She was awarded a Commended for Community Engagement in grade 8, Highly Commended in 9 and 10 and Colours in grade 11.
Kuku is an outstanding leader with good managerial skills. She works extremely hard and has taken the Interact Club to new heights with the many ideas she has contributed and implemented. Her outstanding leadership and work deserves an honours award for Community Engagement.
Alice Ter Morshuizen is awarded Honours in Community Engagement
Alice has been an active member of the Interact club since 2007 when she was in Gr 8. She was appointed to serve on the Interact Board in her grade 11 year where she first served as a most efficient secretary. It was during this year that she was awarded colours for Community Engagement. She presently serves as the deputy-head of Community Engagement for 2011.
Alice has also been very involved in the President’s Award Program. She first enrolled in her Grade 8 year and completed her bronze award in Gr 9. She then completed her silver award in Gr 11 and is one of the few girls at DSG to complete her Gold Award.
She has a real passion for giving of herself for the benefit of others and works well with her peers as well as showing a real concern and care for all children. This is visible through her regular commitment and contribution over the years to numerous ‘Saturday School’s where she formed special friendships with the staff children. She has supervised children on camps and hikes and in January of this year 2011 she spent a week in Hogsback as a leader on the Underpriviledged children’s Camp at Hobbiton.
Towards the end of 2010 she initiated and organised the club session to Viv’s Creche which is situated in Extension 9, in Rhini. Viv’s Creche has become a sought after club and the Interact board is planning a maintenance and painting session at the crèche as a result of this initiative.
During her holidays she has worked in Grahamstown at the SPCA and Hospice and in Port Elizabeth at the Aurora muscular rehabilitation clinic, Bayworld and Isithembiso Childrens Home. Being involved in Community service comes naturally to Alice and she has inspired many others to do the same. She claims that her involvement in experiences and challenges that she encountered through Community Engagement have truly shaped the person she is today and have taught her humility, patience, teamwork, leadership, the value of hard work and endurance.
Alice has been an outstanding leader in Community Engagement at DSG. Not only is her compassion and commitment to the upliftment of others visible through her life she has also been a very efficient administrative manager. Alice is to be commended on her initiative which is driven by a real love for her fellow human beings. Alice deserves an Honours award in Community Engagement for her contribution.
Kelly Long represents South Africa 10th May 2012
Kelly Long represented South Africa at the 5th International Sustainable World Project Olympiad in the USA
