Late last year, we successfully launched a niche, Rockstar Foundation-powered adventure – The One Percent Project – to help the learners at Simonsberg Primary in their efforts to get a new computer room to assist in their education (something which most of us still accept as a right and not a privilege).

We’re happy to announce that we’ve managed to get the project fully funded (a whopping $10 000 USD) with your amazing support. So whilst things aren’t yet sustainable here, we’re trying to add value wherever we can.

We were planning on enrolling another 4 students in 2011, but do not seem to have the financial resources to realise our goal. In exploring ideas to generate more funding, my husband recently suggested that we change the site so that it’s not so “happy” (part of his “V2″ plans). Dumb idea, I thought (to myself).

The site is happy cause we’re dealing with kids here – young girls who like bright colours and who giggle at everything. Even when life hands them some dry bread instead of a bag full of skittles. The site represents these kids and they’re not sad. They are, have been, and most probably will most of the time be happy, in spite of their social pre-disposition. Why? Cause they remain positive in difficult circumstances and are generally content with less.

Upon placing the girls in their new academically supreme schools, it provided them with challenges, like fitting in, adapting and surviving the perplexing curriculum. These girls survived and are now, even more than ever, excited about learning! That’s why we know this Foundation will soon become an enormous success. Only problem is, we have all the resources, save for the most important one: financial aid.

We need you to give the Foundation some of your money and ask your friends to do the same. We have 4 candidates that we wish to place in good schools. All of them showed a severe aptitude for learning. Their parents were also interviewed by a social worker, ensuring us that they will assist us with their support.

Think about it: just because your parents paid for you to go to a good school, doesn’t mean there are other people who are as lucky. The only difference between you and these girls is that they love every minute of their academic career. Let’s face it, there were some days where I thought High School was actually spelt P R I S O N. We have recruited girls who cannot wait to engulf a text book, who are too eager to finish their home work and who want to know *why* the abbreviation Dr doesn’t end with a full stop. They want to *become* doctors and lawyers, engineers and entrepreneurs. Why not give them the platform?

Let’s give them something that they can one day give back, the gift of education.

By making a once off donation or by becoming a member of the Foundation, you walk around with the knowledge that you made a difference in some girl’s life. With your consent, we’ll create your own profile so that you can tell the readers why you have decided to get involved. You’ll be able to monitor their academic progress and can play an integral part of their education. You can also pledge to support a girl for an entire term or year resulting in us being able to post another picture of a smile on the site!

These girls stay positive, let’s give them something to really smile about.

The good news however is: we’re alive & well (albeit in a bit of limbo).

Since the last time we blogged, a few things have happened which will greatly influence our way forward:

• Marianne unfortunately left us in August (to pursue other opportunities, but will still be volunteering with the Foundation), which means we haven’t had a full-time project coordinator since that time. This has meant that I’ve been juggling my duties (betweenWooThemes, Radiiate & writing my book), which also means that I haven’t always found the time to dedicate to the passion I have for the Foundation. Effectively, the only person actively working on the Foundation in the last couple of months, has been Dominique who has taken care of all the admin and made sure that we still run a steady ship.
• Things are *really* going well with Okuhle & Mariana and as soon as there school year finishes in the first week of December, we’ll be sharing their progress & results with you.
• I recently got married and my wife, Jeanne, will soon be joining Rockstar Foundation in a more hands-on capacity in picking up some of the tasks & responsibilities that were left void with Marianne’s departure. Both Jeanne & I are extremely excited about this, as we share a passion for the Foundation and we just know that next year will be a big year for us.
• I’ve assembled a new advisory board consisting of some real hot shots in the online startup world, because we’re hoping that these guys & girls will be able to help the Foundation ramp things up to the next level. We’ll be introducing them soon!

Next step is for us to get V2 of our website & community ready… We’ve got a whole bunch of ideas that will put us on par with what other amazing charities are doing with regards to social media and building an online community around our cause. So stay tuned for that, as we’re only likely to start the development work on this early next year.

PS: In the meantime, keep a lookout for a new initiative that we are launching next week that doesn’t directly relate to the Foundation, but is an awesome cause nonetheless.

When we released the new website last month, the aim was to start generating sustainable donations as soon as possible to continue fueling the growth of the Foundation. The reality is that 6 weeks into this new journey, this hasn’t quite panned out as we had hoped & planned.

Below I’ve included the income statement for the Foundation (1 January 2010 – 30 June 2010), which will highlight the issues we are experiencing. (We will be publishing our financial statements on a continual basis going forward now, as this is part of our policy with regards to being as transparent as possible.)

Income Statement (1 January 2010 – 30 June 2010)

Rockstar Girls Sponsorships (1 January 2010 – 30 January 2010)

This is a summary of the sponsorships that are being distributed to the girls.

From the above statements, you will see that the Foundation has been operating at a shortage of $2673.08 for the first 6 months of 2010. You will also note that I’ve personally donated $4360.58 in cash to the Foundation to make the shortage seem more respectable, but in reality this fails to highlight the immense shortage we are already experiencing.

This is further complicated by the fact that our parent company, Radiiate, are absorbing some significant expenses in terms of office overheads & salaries (Marianne is currently the only employee on the books of the Foundation). Below is a revised income statement that includes these expenses and creates an even bigger shortage:

Revised Income Statement (1 January 2010 – 30 January 2010)

From above you will thus see that the Foundation is trading on a shortage of $16 479.25 USD for the past 6 months, which puts the longer term future & sustainability of the Foundation in doubt. I’m not trying to paint a bleak picture here, but unfortunately these are the significant challenges that we are facing at the moment, which we’re working very hard to overcome.

So we’d like to call on anyone who shares even a small bit of our passion for education & empowerment to become involved in the Foundation. We’re open-minded in terms of any kind of collaboration or partnership that you may suggest (the phrase “beggars can’t be choosers” comes to mind). And obviously, if you want to make a donation, those are always greatly appreciated! (Remember: I’m still matching every $1 you donate with a $1 of my own.)

Note: I used an average exchange rate of $1:R7.50 for the compilation of these statements.

Through his own personal ups and downs, he was able to experience grace which has led to an increasing desire on his behalf to give back.  Brian, who is very passionate about God, his family, music, travel and his job, is probably best known to most of us as the Founder and CEO ofStudioPress.

Brian has been very fortunate to be doing what he loves, so for those who want to follow in his successful footsteps he has the following great advice:  ”Stay diligent and keep going even when things don’t appear to be going in a positive direction.  I fully believe that what happens to you while you wait, is sometimes more important than what it is you are waiting for.”

“I’ve been very blessed in my life, probably more than I ever should be.  However, I truly feel that God has placed in my life a chance to do something great.”

Brian admits that he has a huge heart for the under-resourced, and that helping folks in Africa has always been something that he wanted to do.  When asked to give one reason why someone should support the girls who are benefiting from these academic bursaries, Brian’s answer is quite simple:  ”No matter what we have in life, it’s so much more than we deserve.  In America, we are incredibly lucky and should take even a small portion of our over-abundance to help those in need.”

Clearly helping The Rockstar Foundation is not all that Brian is doing with regards to making a difference.  Brian also signed up for the Chicago Breast Cancer 3 Day Walk, which raises money for breast cancer awareness.

We wish Brian all the best for this brave and challenging endeavor!

The Rockstar Girls still have a long journey ahead of them, being only 9 and 12 years old.  And as we progress and grow into a sustainable organisation, we are definitely going to help more disadvantaged girls like Mariana and Okuhle.  But we can’t reach all of our goals without the support of those people who care about making a difference.  So we are going to give you an opportunity to get to know the wonderful individuals / companies / organisations who are helping The Rockstar Foundation and its girls fulfill all those big dreams.

We will now have a regular “Featured Donor” on our blog, which can be anyone who is showing their support for The Rockstar Foundation.  This means you too!  :)

Our first Featured Donor post will be up before the end of this week, and this person happens to be one of the nicest guys ever in our opinion!   Here’s a clue: He’s a hopeless Starbucks addict who does (among other things) freelance internet consulting..

We often need to remind ourselves not to take the simple things in life for granted.  But spending time with Mariana and Okuhle always quickly puts things back into perspective.  No matter how small, these girls experience every single gesture as a special gift, for which they always show much appreciation.  And our girls’ day out was no exception.

Pampering

The girls had no idea what they were in for when I picked them up early Thursday morning.  They were extremely excited (read very talkative) in the car on our way to the first stop..  Which turned out to be La Beautique.  This is a gorgeous (and very friendly!) beauty salon situated in Tyger Waterfront, Bellville.  Nicole, the owner, was only too happy to treat these young ladies to their first ever chocolate facials, manicures, foot massages and pedicures!  They got to do some of the steps by themselves and on each other, which was a real treat to watch!  After thoughtful consideration, the girls both opted to go for the purple nail polish..  Apparently that’s quite fashionable.

Mariana and Okuhle listened carefully as Nicole explained the general do’s and don’ts and then gave them some valuable tips which they could use at home.  As we left La Beautique, I could hear them chattering in the background: ”I feel like a princess!”.. “Me too!”

Making Music

Afterwards we had a quick lunch at the office, where the girls got to catch up with Adii and Dom.  But their day was far from over.  We then left for It’s Music, a well-known music shop / recording studio situated in Durbanville.  These guys are experts and muso’s themselves, so the girls were lucky to be in very good company.  They spent some time exploring the shop, jaws dragging on the ground.  Since both girls love music and singing (and are interested in pursuing other musical instruments) Noddy introduced them to the guitar and even gave them a lesson.  Poor Okuhle’s arms couldn’t quite reach the strings, but Mariana caught on very well!

The real surprise, however, happened when they were taken into Gavin’s recording studio..  He set them up, earphones and all, and instructed them to start singing!  The girls recorded Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrica a capella, which resulted in me having to hide a few tears.  Gavin made them each a CD of their recording – a special souvenir of an incredible experience.

Thanks to Nicole, Gavin and Noddy – who helped give Mariana and Okuhle a special girls’ day which they will never forget!

For more pictures of the girls day, go to our Facebook Fan Page!

Smile!

I have a *massive* passion for the Foundation and as a result I’ve dedicated both my time / skills in establishing it, but have also been responsible for a significant portion of the funding for the Foundation.

I would thus like to invite you all to take me up on a little challenge: I’m willing to match every dollar that is donated until the end of July. This means that for every $1 that you, your friends or some random Twitter followers donate, I’m willing to match that in full. There’s no catch & no limit to the amount that I will match; so donate away and let’s see how much money we can generate from this.

Up until the end of the month, we will be making weekly updates here on the amount that has been donated and at the end of the month, we’ll write & release a full report with regards to this campaign. So we’ll be totally transparent in doing this and we’re hoping we can count on your support.

UPDATE (21 JULY 2010): Thanks to all the support! We have raised $2515 USD thus far.

You will receive a beautiful personalized necklace, compliments of Collect Jewellery.

A very  BIG THANK YOU from all of us at The Rockstar Foundation for making a difference in the lives of our girls..   We’ll be in touch!

blog swirl

Mariana

It’s not all play, however..  Mariana started taking English lessons from Leigh Gillespie in the beginning of 2010.  Leigh, a professional TEFL tutor, often works with international students who need to master the English language.  Leigh has been wonderful in assisting Mariana with various other subjects as well (not just English) and her commitment is one of the biggest reasons for Mariana’s steady progress.   We scheduled 3 tutor lessons at Leigh’s home during the holidays – the first of which took place last week Thursday.

Tangue, Mariana’s father, accompanied Mariana to her lesson with Leigh, where I got to meet him for the first time!  He has been working in Angola and Namibia to support his family and arrived back in South Africa a couple of weeks ago.  He is so proud of Mariana and this wonderful opportunity that she received.

Okuhle

Okuhle has been spending a lot of time with her cousin Namhla, who also lives in the colourful township of Kayamandi.  I visited the girls last week to deliver a little surprise to Okuhle..  She expressed interest in learning how to play the piano, but since the school requires music students to have their chosen instrument at home, we opted for something a little smaller!  We gave Okuhle a recorder (the same instrument that Mariana is playing right now) and she will start taking lessons in the new term.  The deal is that if she practices hard and does well, we can look into guitar lessons.  So watch this space…

Collect Jewellery, one of South Africa’s favourite boutique jewellery brands, agreed to sponsor us a beautiful personalised necklace to the value of $50. This unique silver Name Necklace will be handmade especially for you – and you can choose any name or inspirational word to wear close to your heart.

So what do you have to do to be entered into the draw for this fantastic giveaway?

It’s simple.  Just go here and make a donation!  Not only will you will help us raise funds for the Rockstar Girls‘ education, but you will stand a chance to get your hands on this gorgeous original piece of jewellery, all the way from sunny South Africa.

If you’re a guy and don’t particularly fancy wearing silver, this is the perfect gift for that special someone.  And what better gift than the one supporting a great cause..  ;)

No matter how big or small, every single donation will be entered into the draw.  Giveaway starts today (23 June) and ends Friday 2 July.

My week was really tough and we had two tests. Maths and Geography both had sums which was hard. I also started feeling more comfortable around the maths section and I’m liking it.

2. What Was The Best Thing That Happened?

I got a good mark for my Economic Management Science (EMS) test which I am proud of because I was very worried about it.

3. The Worst Thing That Happened?

The worst thing was having those two tests which were hard.

4. Something New You learnt?

I learnt how to make stuffed potatoes in Cookery with tuna, ham or beef which was delicious.

5. One Thing You Are Grateful For?

I am grateful that I have the opportunitie to go to school and get advanced education and I can get a second chance.

6. What Did You Do This Past Weekend?

I didn’t do much over the weekend but our friend came over from Madalay.

We first went to assembly then the grade fives rapped a long bible piece then we danced it was fun.  We went back to our classes and we ate our lunch.  Then we walked to the Rhenish Girls High School.  Some of us had white flags in our hands and others had navy, because these are the colours of our school uniforms.

We walked in town and waved at the people in the shops and then we came to a place where there is a field with a stage.  Now we sit down and this lady tells us more about Rhenish then three children talked about the three men that started Rhenish.  There names were Weber and he’s colour is red, Ter Linden he’s colour is green and then Van der Stel he’s colour is yellow.

Before we almost went back they showed us the Rhenish Institute.  Then we walked to the *Moederkerk.  The grade fives sat at a house at the back of the church.  We were going to watch the ceremony on video but it wouldn’t be nice so we went in.

The principal welcomed us all then Rev. Martin Lund gave a speech – it was quite boring. Then Rhenish Primary choir sang a song then the boy said a bible verse.  Rhenish Girls High School’s choir also sang a song.

Then Rev. David Hunter told us how Rhenish is like a chameleon that it changed a lot of times.  He took so long that I almost wanted to fall asleep, but he finally finished.

Mrs. Comaille said thank you for us coming here.  Then we went to the seminary where they teach you to be a minister and we got free juice, popcorn and a cupcake!

Thanks

First off though, I need to say thanks to a few people who have made considerable contributions behind the scenes in recent weeks in terms of getting this website online & also kicking things off in an appropriate way:

• Veerle Pieters, for designing the amazing Rockstar Foundation logo that fully captures the spirit in which the Foundation was started;
• Liam McKay, for donating his time, creativity and immense design skill to create an absolutely beautiful web design that we believe will soon be featured in all of the major CSS galleries (submit the side every where if you can);
• Ryan Downie, who handled all of the front-end (which was very challenging) & EE development on the site and held our hand in getting accustomed to the EE environment;
• Bjorn Borresen, for helping out with the PayPal integration, making it possible for all of our supporters to help us out with a few donations;
• And finally, our new friends Aran Down & Andrew Wilkinson, who have made significant and extremely generous donations in the last week to kick start all of the campaigns & projects we have in the works.

The First Version

So the website as you see it now is (for those tech-inclined readers) something more advanced than a beta, but not quite a full V1 yet. This means that all of the functionality is perfect yet (in our opinion) and you may encounter the odd bug. We apologize for both at this stage and we endeavour to fix those as they pop up, as well as to continue building what we have started to put in place.

With the new site though, we hope that you will interact with us more and it is our biggest wish that we will be able to build a passionate & loyal community of fans, supporters, contributors and followers. We have great believe in our cause & the significance of enabling the Rockstar Girls to be the leaders & history makers of tomorrow; so it is our hope that we will be able to connect with the people that share our passion in this & build a vibrant & supportive community based on that shared interest & goal.

As we start getting our wheels into motion again, I want to encourage you to read about both Mariana & Okuhle’s progress since joining The Rockstar Foundation, as both of them have grown considerably in a very short period of time. And then, our cherry on top would be for you to become a member of our community and if you’d like to get involved in what we’re doing, please consider contribution with a donation.

My week was okay. I also had a Maths and Science test.

2. Best Thing That Happened This Week?

The best thing that happened was when I got 20 out of 20 for my spelling test and it was a dictation test!

3. Something New You Learned?

I learnt how to listen and how you can see if other people are listening.

4. One Thing I Am Grateful For?

I am grateful that I have a hardworking mom and that I have food to eat everyday. I am also grateful that I have a family and friends.

5. One Thing You Did Over The Weekend?

On the weekend I woke up and made breakfast for my mom and drew her a picture and made a card for Mothers Day.

6. Worst Thing That Happened?

The worst thing that happened is the mark I got for my maths test. I studied very hard for it.

It was rather quite exciting because it was the school’s birthday (150 years) on the 30th of April 2010.

2. What Was The Best Thing That Happened?

I past my first Eglish test.  (Yippee).  I also did a dance with all the grade 5 for assembly.  I loved it, it was fun.

3. The Worst Thing That Happened?

While I was talking to my friends I tripped.  It was so embarrissing.  They laughed at me.

4. Something New You learnt?

I learned that Climate is what you expect and Weather is what you get.

5. One Thing You Are Grateful For?

I am grateful to be here actually and for those people oversees that are donating.  I’m just grateful for everything.

6. Did You Do Anything Kind For Someone This Week?

My friend didn’t have food that day so I gave her my lunch money to buy something.

THIS MEANS THAT WE NEED YOUR HELP!

They would love to answer your questions too, so please submit them via the Comments below, or use the Contact Form.  Perhaps you want to know more about the subjects they take, what they want to be when they grow up, who their rolemodels are etc.   The girls are really looking forward to answering all of your questions, so please feel free to to get in touch.

MARIANA

1. How Was Your Week?

My week was really tough and we had two tests.  Maths and Geography both had sums which was hard.  I also started feeling more comfortable around the maths section and I’m liking it.

2. What Was The Best Thing That Happened?

I got a good mark for my Economic Management Science (EMS) test which I am proud of because I was very worried about it.

3. The Worst Thing That Happened?

The worst thing was having those two tests which were hard.

4. Something New You learnt?

I learnt how to make stuffed potatoes in Cookery with tuna, ham or beef which was delicious.

5. One Thing You Are Grateful For?

I am grateful that I have the opportunitie to go to school and get advanced education and I can get a second chance.

6. What Did You Do This Past Weekend?

I didn’t do much over the weekend but our friend came over from Madalay.

OKUHLE

1. How Was Your Week?

It was rather quite exciting because it was the school’s birthday (150 years) on the 30th of April 2010.

2. What Was The Best Thing That Happened?

I past my first Eglish test.  (Yippee).  I also did a dance with all the grade 5 for assembly.  I loved it, it was fun.

3. The Worst Thing That Happened?

While I was talking to my friends I tripped.  It was so embarrissing.  They laughed at me.

4. Something New You learnt?

I learned that Climate is what you expect and Weather is what you get.

5. One Thing You Are Grateful For?

I am grateful to be here actually and for those people oversees that are donating.  I’m just grateful for everything.

6. Did You Do Anything Kind For Someone This Week?

My friend didn’t have food that day so I gave her my lunch money to buy something.

So Far

After an 8 month journey, we are still as passionate (if not more!) about bettering the lives of the young ladies whom you have come to know as The Rockstar Girls.  Both Okuhle and Mariana – with the help of a strong and committed network of support – are doing incredibly well at adjusting to their new environments.  The network of support that we are providing them with (remedial classes, personal tutors, counsellors etc)  is an absolutely necessary lifeline for these girls.  Without this support our girls would most probably not be able to succeed in these foreign, academically orientated environments in which they now find themselves.  So by committing to providing our girls with the best education, we also made the commitment to provide them with the tools they need to succeed.

Thank You’s

Our first and foremost priority is to ensure that the Rockstar Girls (present and future) will have the security of an excellent education and a happy future filled with endless possibilities.  And we sincerely appreciate all the support we have been getting in order to help us make this possible.

Although we are dependent on financial contributions to sustain us, there are many other ways to support The Rockstar Foundation and its girls.  We’d like to thank you for the donations, of course, but we also want to say a big thank you for the e-mails of interest, the friendly comments, “liking” our Facebook Fanpage, the RT’s on Twitter and for following the girls’ journeys by reading their journal entries.  We really do appreciate it!

WANT TO HELP?

If you would like to take your support for The Rockstar Foundation a wee step further – and make it public – you can add our awesome logo (kindly designed by one very talented Veerle Pieters) to your blog or website.  Please fill in the contact form and we will send you the logo with pleasure!

Here are some of the hard facts about girls’ education via The Girl Effect :

• There are 170 million children across the world that do not attend school.. and of those children, 70 % are girls.
• It is estimated that, of those girls who are enrolled at school, 100 million will drop out of school before they even complete their primary school education
• In developing countries, 1 girl out of 7 will marry before they turn 15 and 38% will marry before they are 18.
• Almost 50% of girls become mothers before the age of 18.
• Pregnancy is the leading cause of death of girls between the ages of 15 – 19 worldwide.
• Of the youth infected with HIV/Aids in Africa, 75% are girls.
• Research has shown a consistent relationship between better infant and child care and a higher level of schooling among mothers.
• When women and girls receive an income, they re-invest 90% of their income into their families, as opposed to 30-40% for men.
• Educated girls grow into educated women, who – research shows – have healthier babies and are more likely to educate their children.
• When a girl in the developing world receives an education, she marries four years later and has 2.2 fewer children.

My mother is very kind, sharing and patient.  I would really want to follow in her footsteps.

Well Keri Hilson is a singer and dancer.  I like her and I really love her songs!

Sometimes making a difference is easier than we realise.

Change starts with ONE girl.

These past few days we did a Maths and an *EMS test.  I did great in the Maths test, but not so well in the EMS test.  The teacher is also setting up an English test, so I hope I will do well.

We also learned a lot about littering.  We had to do a poster to tell people they need to stop littering.

We then did another EMS test and this time I got very good marks.   We had to read all of our marks in class and I am happy with my marks.

23/3/2010

I am very happy that all this time has passed and I can go on to Rhenish Primary!  I’m excited because I’m going to meet new people.  This has really helped me and my parents a lot.  It is a relief for my family.

I’m sad to leave my friends, but I’m happy to go to the new school.

12/4/2010

My first day I wasn’t nervous and I quickly made new friends.  It was a little awkward seeing new faces and teachers.

I also love my new teacher, Mrs Chapman.  She is a nice teacher.

13/4/2010

I think everything is much better now.  I am settling in and my good new friends are showing me around.  Today we did a **begrips toets.  It was easy as pie.  I think I am going to love Rhenish!

14/4/2010

Today I was happy because I didn’t feel like the new girl anymore.  I got to know some more teachers and I am settling in very good.

On my holiday I didn’t really do much. I went to my mom’s friend’s house in Khayelitsha and performed at Delft.

I did a poem called “I Am Trying To Search”. I think it was a really good performance and my other friends sang.

We went there at 8 PM and only went home at about 2 AM the next morning! I had so much fun there.

12/04/10

My First Day Of Term 2 On the first day of term I was five minutes late and it was assembly.

My classmates were still in my class and we were supposed to be dressed in our winter uniforms. At the end of last term they were given a letter saying that we should come back in our summer uniforms, but I never knew. I was absent because of the taxi strikes.

So I went to school in my winter uniform….! I was so embarrassed. I was the only one wearing a winter uniform!

13/04/10

Second Day When I got back home from school my small sister told me some very bad news. My grade 4 teacher from Holy Cross Primary School had passed away.

She was one of the best teachers there. I liked her very much and she was always there to help. She was my favourite teacher even though she was old.

I hope she may rest in peace.

Okuhle has been writing up a storm in her journal about her first day at Rhenish Primary, but we couldn’t resist sharing some of what happened..  Her own journal post will be up soon, however!

Sebenzile (Okuhle’s  father) was so proud of his beautiful young daughter when he accompanied her to school yesterday.  And we know this to be a fact, because he kept saying so!   Mrs Chapman, Okuhle’s  lovely new teacher, knew just how to make her feel at ease and then introduced her to her new class: grade 5 C.

Miss Popular

It didn’t take this ten-year-old Rockstar Girl long to get acquainted with her new classmates. Okuhle was very popular on her first day and from what we hear she made at least 5 new friends!  Her friends all made a big effort to help her feel welcome at Rhenish, and we couldn’t be happier about this.  It is so important for our Rockstar Girls to feel comfortable and fit in with the other children at school – in spite of their circumstances at home.  It is a huge boost for their self confidence and gives them an important sense of belonging.

HOLISTIC SUPPORT

The Rockstar Foundation wants to give each girl the best possible school experience, so we really have to focus on so much more than just good grades. We encourage balance, so our girls get involved in all sorts of activities.  Okuhle has to choose at least one after school activity in which to participate.  She mentioned that she would like to play netball (a girls’ sport similar to basketball) and perhaps also sing in the choir.  Well, let’s wait and she what tickles her fancy and then take it from there!

After the whole clarinet debacle, Mariana took up the recorder and now also has weekly drama lessons.  Both these activities helped contribute to her incredible progress at Rustenburg Girls Junior School, so we realise the importance of taking a holistic approach to the girls’ education.

FROM THE ROCKSTAR FOUNDATION’S SIDE

We know we have been a little quiet lately..  But rest assured, behind the scenes  we have been working very hard!  Our new website will be launched soon and we are in the process of connecting with partner companies and other NPO organisations who share our vision of successfully empowering and educating disadvantaged young girls.  There are some very interesting connections in the pipeline, which will make an even bigger difference in our Rockstar Girls’ lives.

Of course we also want to recruit new Rockstar Girls to join Mariana and Okuhle, and with your continuous support and donations we can do just that.  Please remember that every little bit helps us to make a difference.  Whether it is to help buy our girls new school shoes, socks, stationery or send them for drama and music lessons!

Feel free to drop us a mail if you want to know how you can get involved.

Yippee!

Okuhle, with the help of amazing people like Brian Gardener, will be able to enrol at Rhenish Primary immediately! A vacancy has become available and we are thrilled to be able to send her to this wonderful school situated in the beautiful Stellenbosch. Probably not as thrilled as Okuhle, who for the first time in her life was at a complete loss for words!

It has been a happy and emotional day for all of us and we are honoured to be able to help girls as deserving and eager as Okuhle.

When we got at SOS we went to the hall and we were put into groups. We then went to our dorms and met our roommates.

After the meeting we were called to go to the hall again and we were told that we will be doing a bundu bash!

A bundu bash is a group of obstacles that we do and it was very tiring doing this on our first day.

When we had finished we went to the hall again and we were told all the SOS rules. What we must and mustn’t do.

At six we finally had supper.

DAY 2 SOS CAMP

We woke up 6h30 am and we went to shower and cleaned our dorms. At 7h00 am we had our breakfast and afterwards we went to visit the farm animals.

We saw llamas, sheep, porcupines, pigs, owls, rabits, ducks, camels, horses, ponies, cows and flamingos.

We then went for a fun hike.

1. Her face was a perfect oval, like a circle that had its two other sides gently compressed by a thigh master.
2. His thoughts tumbled in his head, making and breaking alliances like underpants in a dryer without Cling Free.
3. He spoke with wisdom that can only come from experience, like a guy who went blind because he looked at a solar eclipse without one of those boxes with a pinhole in it and now goes around the country speaking about the dangers of looking at a solar eclipse without one of those boxes with a pinhole in it.
4. She grew on him like E. coli and he was room temperature Canadian beef.
5. She had a deep throaty genuine laugh, like that sound a dog makes just before he throws up.
6. Her vocabulary was as bad, as, like, whatever.
7. He was as tall as a six foot three inch tree.
8. The revelation that his marriage of 30 years had disintegrated because of his wife’s infidelity came as a rude shock, like a surcharge at a formerly surcharge free ATM.
9. The little boat gently drifted across the pond exactly the way a bowling ball wouldn’t.
10. McBride fell 12 stories, hitting the pavement like a hefty bag filled with vegetable soup.
11. From the attic came an unearthly howl. The whole scene had an eerie surreal quality, like when you’re on vacation in another city and Jeopardy comes on at 7 pm instead of 7:30.
12. Her hair glistened in the rain like nose hair after a sneeze.
13. The hailstones leaped up off the pavement, just like maggots when you fry them in hot grease.
14. Long separated by cruel fate, the star crossed lovers raced across a grassy field toward each other like two freight trains, one having left Cleveland at 6:36 p.m. traveling at 55 mph, the other from Topeka at 4:19 p.m. at a speed of 35 mph.
15. They lived in a typical suburban neighborhood with picket fences that resemble Nancy Kerrigan’s teeth.
16. John and Mary had never met. They were like two hummingbirds who had also never met.
17. He fell for her like his heart was a mob informant and she was the east river.
18. Even in his last years, grandpappy had a mind like a steel trap, only one that had been left out so long, it had rusted shut.
19. The plan was simple, like my brother-in-law Phil. But unlike Phil, this plan just might work.
20. The young fighter had a hungry look, the kind you get from not eating for a while.
21. “Oh, Jason, take me!” she panted, her breasts heaving like a college freshman on $1-a-beer night.
22. He was as lame as a duck. Not the metaphorical lame duck, either, but a real duck that was actually lame. Maybe from stepping on a landmine or something.
23. The Ballerina rose gracefully en pointe and extended one slender leg behind her, like a dog at a fire hydrant.
24. It was an American tradition, like fathers chasing kids with power tools.
25. He was deeply in love. When she spoke, he thought he heard bells, as if she were a garbage truck backing up.
26. She was as easy as the TV guide crossword.
27. Her eyes were like limpid pools, only they had forgotten to put in any pH cleanser.
28. She walked into my office like a centipede with 98 missing legs.
29. Her voice had that tense grating quality, like a generation thermal paper fax machine that needed a band tightening.
30. It hurt the way your tongue hurts after you accidentally staple it to the wall.

Having met so many amazing people through The Rockstar Foundation, I’ve come to realise that there is so much good in this world and that surrounding ourselves with positive people is the key to experiencing this life in a completely different way. It becomes a far more enjoyable journey when the people we surround ourselves with exude happiness, inspite of themselves or their circumstances.

Love And Smiles

I have come to know people like the De Sousa’s and the Mayiji’s, who at times have to scrape together what little they have in order to make ends meet. Yet I’ve never once encountered one of them on a bad day. I’m always greeted with so much love and smiles that is hard to imagine these people ever being miserable because of wanting for more.

JOURNEY OF CHANGE

And so began my personal journey of change. It’s not an outwardly obvious journey, visible to everyone around me. It’s rather an inner metamorphosis. Where you slowly start feeling the changes taking place inside. I used to wake up thinking: “Not another day”. I am now so grateful to wake up every morning thinking: “I can’t wait to make a difference today”.   And just like those subtle personal changes that take place over a period of time, the differences we make in others’ lives aren’t always obvious or visible at first either. Until you step back and see the bigger picture!

The Company We Keep

I would like to encourage you to take time and reflect about the company you keep. Are the people in your life encouraging a happier, fulfilled and more grateful and giving you, or are you surrounded by cynics eager to criticise every hint of goodness shining through in humanity? If not, you should think about a change of scenery! Because lately I realised that I had a warped view of the world and the people in it.

PEOPLE ARE GOOD

Thanks to the people who are now enriching my life I know that the majority of people are good. Some people do make the most of an opportunity when handed to them and some people do want to help. I focus on these positives and allow myself to grow into my own personal happiness every day.

And so started the tedious process of finding Okuhle an top English medium school close to her home in Stellenbosch. Raising the funds to be able to do so was, and still is, very high on our list of priorities too!

Waiting

At the end of 2009, Okuhle was assessed and placed on a waiting list at one of the top schools in the country. In spite of being only semi-private, this particular school still has excellent academic standards and remain at the top of its game in all areas. Their annual school and extra curricular fees are much higher than that of the average South African public school and the number of children per class is always kept at a minimum. Also, the teachers they employ are some of the best and experienced in the country.

Unless a child applies to this type of school (including many former Model C schools) up to a year in advance, chances of a vacancy being available are very slim. They are also very particular in accepting the new children from their closest surrounding areas first, complicating the chances of a township girl – far removed from the suburbs – getting accepted.

Since The Rockstar Foundation only opened its doors in September 2009 and recruited Okuhle in October, it was never going to be a smooth ride finding her a decent academically orientated school with a vacancy in 2010.

Holding Thumbs

We have applied at some of the top English medium schools in the Stellenbosch and surrounding areas for Okuhle, hoping to secure acceptance for her. Fortunately the teachers at Simonsberg Primary, Okuhle’s current school, are working very hard to ensure that she is adequately prepared for the high academic standards at her next school.

We cannot wait for that call, letting us know that Okuhle can pack her bags and enrol for a great education!

To see some behind-the-scenes video footage, take a look at Models For A Day..

We would absolutely love to hear what you think!

Because Mariana only started attending RGJS in May 2009, she missed out on this wonderful experience last year. Now it’s just about all this little girl can talk about! She’s seen pictures from previous years’ trips and this gets her even more excited. The camp is called “School In The Wilds” and will be from 3-5 March. It is a very bonding experience for the new grade 6 learners and the girls talk about this for years to come.

Mariana has never been on a camping trip (or any trip for that matter) and we would like her to have the time of her life on this one!  We received a list of all the necessities the girls will need and it’s no surprise that Mariana doesn’t have some of the items on the list. It’s times like this that we are reminded again of how different Mariana’s world is to that of her school friends.

It’s times like this that we are reminded again of how different Mariana’s world is to that of her school friends. Below are some items on the list that we need to buy for Mariana. However, we will gladly accept donations of these items if you’re in South Africa and have any of these lying around in the house.

Mariana Needs:

• Old Digital or Disposable Camera (We promise to post her pictures on the blog!)
• Travel bag
• Sleeping Bag
• Decent towel

Please get in touch with us if this is something you can help out with.

Christine

By now it’s no secret that our Rockstar Girls had a professional photo shoot on 2 February with the brilliant Christine Meintjes. Last year Christine, one of South Africa’s top photographers, kindly offered to do a shoot for the girls and we have all been looking forward to it ever since!

THE MEETING

This was Okuhle and Mariana’s first meeting, so it really was a big day! Mariana immediately took ownership of her “older sister” role and they hit it of very well. It was such a treat to see these two interact with each other and it made for fantastic pictures.. We made a short video of the events while waiting for Christine to finish the editing. It was quite a struggle for us to finally bring this little clip to you, so we hope you enjoy this as much as we did..

Wasting Time

Right now I’m not too sure if wasting time counts as an activity, but we’re really busy and exhausted doing just that these past two days! We shot a video of the Rockstar Girls’ long awaited photo shoot on 2 February, but sadly what we know about editing, resizing, producing and a bunch of other stuff relating to videos is shocking to say the least.

So this little production/presentation is taking us far longer than expected. I’m sure by the time our video is uploaded on the blog,Christine will be done editing all those pictures she took!

The little optimist in me likes to think “Well, at least you’re learning something new!”. I’d rather not repeat what the little pessimist said!

Basic Education

It is difficult, however, to be sure what the word “basic” refers to. If “basic” means that a school cannot provide a child access to an obviously beneficial (and basic!) resource such as a functional library, then fine, our children are all well provided for in terms of their “basic” education. But, if you would like the reality to reflect something better than what it is, then this so called “right to a basic education” becomes redundant.

Considering the whole 2009 Matric Pass Rate debacle, it is clear that a basic education simply isn’t enough to provide our youth with the necessary tools and skills to uplift themselves. More has to be done to in terms of directing government funds where it’s needed – like following the example of successful schools and stocking libraries with some books. That would be great start. There are excellent schools in South Africa (including former model C government schools) with fantastic academic track records. But for the average child in a poverty stricken community, these schools are not an option.

STOPPING THE CYCLE OF POVERTY

So until the underfunded schools can offer children what these well-resourced schools can in terms of what is basic, disadvantaged children will remain trapped in this cycle of poverty.

How can we change this? By providing the Rockstar Girls with a portal into a magical world where schools actually have structures in place, libraries with books, sports & other activities and well qualified educators. We can’t change the system, but by taking Rockstar Girls from their circumstances and placing them in the best possible schools, we are closing this gap between a poor and middle class education.

Rockstar style!

Here’s a little flashback

to share our experience at the USB last year: Adii decided to send Dom and myself on an NPO Management Course in August 2009 at the University of Stellenbosch’s Business School in order to “adequately prepare” us for what lay ahead. Since we didn’t officially exist as an NPO (yet) and neither of us were NPO Managers (yet), we had to recruit the help of a friend in the field. She put in a good for The Rockstar Foundation in order to be accepted into this challenging course and fortunately for us the USB obliged.

NPO Bootcamp

And so we started on an intense week of NPO boot camp! Hitting the books after years of absence from any type of educational institution is no joke! At least it wasn’t all study all day.. We met the most incredible and inspirational people, all of whom were involved in various nonprofit organisations. We brainstormed in teams and shared creative ideas/advice in between attending the most interesting lectures on Finance, Strategic & Project Management and Marketing (presented by some of the top MBA lecturers from the USB).

This interactive course is the only one of its kind in South Africa, and I would highly recommend it to any organisation who would like to equip their staff with the necessary tools to take their NPO to another level. So after more than a month of anxiously waiting to hear if we passed the final (hugely intricate and stressful!) assignment – we were awarded our NPO Management Certificates at the awards ceremony (I added the pic as proof..)

It also happened to be the 10 Year Anniversary of this NPO course, so the event was made extra special by all the important people who attended. Beautifully framed certificates on the office wall aside, this experience gave myself and Dom the insight we needed to understand what we needed to do to achieve sustainability in The Rockstar Foundation. So in case you ever thought about asking, we aren’t completely in the dark about managing a nonprofit!

LESSONS LEARNED

And if I had to isolate the most important lesson we took from this course? Learning to become constant students. No matter how much experience you gain, this field is never short of new challenges, each requiring an individual approach. I also happen to think that this “constant student” idea is a good thing to apply in our every day lives as well..

Mariana wants to quit her clarinet (don’t feel bad if you have no idea what a clarinet is!) lessons and we have to make the very grownup decision of either supporting her choice, or encouraging her to continue her clarinet lessons for the possible longterm benefits they may hold. Obviously children need to learn about commitment and the importance of sticking to and completing tasks that aren’t necessarily enjoyable anymore. Question is: Is this the right time and way to enforce this life lesson?

Some Help

Please let us know how you feel about this, especially if you’ve experienced a similar situation with your own children or growing up. Perhaps you wish your parents never let you quit those guitar lessons because that’s the only thing that is now keeping you from starting that band (baby)! Or you might still be dealing with some anger issues originating from your childhood when you were forced to spend time trying to master something you hated.

Looking forward to your comments and insights into the matter!

The bad luck continued with multiple visits to dentists and doctors and I was sitting around waiting for the third crisis – they say all things happen in threes. I refused to swim at Fishhoek beach on an outing with my other half for fear that my third strike may involve being eaten by a shark (which in hindsight was a good call on my part after the horrific attack at that very same beach yesterday),would only cross a busy street at a pedestrian crossing, was extra cautious while driving, cooked with a fire extinguisher at hand and so-forth. Basically I was sitting around waiting for the universe to throw another spanner in my works. Being a very emotional person I am first to admit that all of this got me down.

I sat around on my last week of my much needed summer holiday absolutely defeated. Nothing seemed to be going my way and all I could hear was everyone else taking about how fantastic 2010 was going to be, all they were looking forward too and how this was going to be the best year ever. Now anyone who has ever been in my situation would understand that hearing how frikkin fantastic everyone else’s lives are while your down in the dumps is soul destroying. A little piece of me wanted to stab them in the eye each time they mentioned how happy they were. Now I’m a nice person and looking back I am horrified that I even thought these things, but hey I guess we’ve all been there (or is it just me in which case I am not as nice a person as I thought?)

Now, I’m not sure when this epiphany happened or when my mind set changed but I remember waking up one morning with a sense of calm washing over me. Over night I had decided to give the universe the finger and no longer allow circumstance to get me down. I was no longer going to sweat the small stuff. I had so much to be thankful for. A beautiful home, people I loved and who loved me back and every ingredient needed for a happy and fulfilled life. So along the way I ran into a few unavoidable hurdles, but should that be any reason to wake up bitter and let it control your life? Instead I have decided to approach each obstacle this year has thrown at me one by one and little by little. But along the way I am going to try my utmost to remain positive and happy.

I’ve decided to put all my energies into things that give me warm fuzzies, are good for my soul and make me smile. Building on my relationships, making a difference, being someone I would like to be around – those are things I’m going to focus on.The Rockstar Foundationand all it stands for and hopes to achieve is a huge contributing factor to those personal goals and also something I can learn from.  Mariana de Sousa, our first appointed Rockstar recruit, is a shining example of not sweating the small stuff. Regardless of her circumstance, her history or the hardships she’s had to endure she has faced each one of them in her stride and done so with a smile on her face and positivity radiating from her. I think that this is something each of us can learn from.

Today I am off to another dentist visit. He may give me good news, he probably won’t (ok! ok! lets be positive he probably WILL). I have however made a conscience decision to take it in my stride, remain positive and not let it get me down, whatever the outcome. Whether or not I am going to be able to apply this rule to every circumstance in my life is yet to be seen, but a girl can try! Bring on 2010!

Mariana and Mesiah were sipping on their yummie – and very tempting – milkshakes whilst me and Zameka engaged in some grownup talk. From our conversation it was clear that even though most children Mariana’s age were having a carefree December holiday, with schoolwork being the furthest thing from their minds, this Rockstar Girl was working hard.

Mariana did her Kumon Maths homework every day and we are extremely proud of her for being so committed to achieving good marks this year.. When we discussed after school activities for the year ahead, Mariana quickly mentioned that she would love to take up drama and join the African dancing group at her school.. This is not at all surprising once you get to know this animated little girl!

Hopefully we can fit these activities into her already busy schedule for 2010.. It’s amazing to see how she’s coming into her own now and getting to know herself better in the process. Her confidence definitely kicked up a gear over the past few months!

This kind and warm hearted family has something else besides Mariana’s year at RGJS to look forward to.. Thandiswa, Mariana’s older sister, successfully passed her grade 9 year and Tangue, Mariana’s father, is finally coming home from Angola. Don’t you just get warm fuzzies all over when small blessings go the way of deserving people?