9 November 2023
Maritzburg College grade 11 student Joshua Samuel has identified an opportunity for people to make a heart-warming difference in the lives of children from disadvantaged backgrounds, and it needn’t cost participants a cent.
Josh is leading a drive at College – and anyone is welcome to support it – to collect unused sports equipment and sports shoes to help uplift those who cannot afford either.
“It’s a clean-out,” he said, “looking in your cupboard, finding something you don’t use anymore, and ensuring it goes to someone else. It’s not like those things are going anywhere… Someone will be using those things every day, instead of you tossing them aside.”
How it began
The seeds for the initiative – The For the love of Sport (FTLOS) Project – were sown when Josh was representing Maritzburg College’s 1st volleyball team in a tournament where the players from one of the development teams didn’t have shoes. With a prod from his mother, he decided to do something about that.
Josh went door-to-door in his neighbourhood, asking people if they had any sporting goods that they no longer used that might make a world of difference for someone else. The response was very encouraging. Now, though, he wants to make an even greater impact.
Recalling the first time he was part of a handover, Josh said: “The first time that we donated new shoes, it gave me a great relief on my heart, and a great sense of fulfilment.
“It was a shock for them because they’d never had someone giving them something out of the kindness of their heart. It was really great to see them filled with joy.”
“We can do a lot more”
These are the first steps, he added: “We can do a lot more. There’s a lot more that we can do, not just at Maritzburg College, but in the whole of KZN, and throughout the whole of South Africa.”
The FTLOS Project could be replicated throughout the country, he believes, and there is a massive need for it. There may be one-off drives in support of others here and there, but Josh would like to make his initiative a lasting one.
“I don’t know of any donation drives for charity that are looking for old sports equipment,” he said. “I’ve played in so many different sports’ games where underprivileged teams have one set of kit and have to share it. It’s sad to see. We have so much, like the latest cricket bats, football boots, rugby boots. It’s not a nice sight.”
He also identified children making the move from primary school to high school as being among the most likely people who could make a difference because of the changes they make when they make that move. “Some people drop different sporting codes, and some stop playing sport in general, and they have so many things at home that they’re no longer using,” he explained.
Support
His peers have tried their best to support the FTLOS Project, Josh said: “So many of the boys in my grade have also tried to share and publicize the logo and the goals of the outreach programme on social media, and by word-of-mouth, obviously. There are a lot of boys talking about it among the different forms and grades.
“We are just trying to get as many people aware of this as possible, and to grow it and help as much as we can by getting as many donations as possible.”
Josh’s long-term goal is to establish the FTLOS Project in schools throughout South Africa. Meanwhile, for the month of November, any donations can be dropped off at the reception at Maritzburg College.
Showing where the donations go to
He has also requested donors to leave their contact details, so that the FTLOS project can contact them afterwards and show them to whom their gifts have gone and to acknowledge the difference they have made: “A letter from a person that they are helping, photos and a small flower,” he said.
In the future, he said, wherever the donations are made, those donations will then be distributed at the development centres in those districts.
Leave a Reply