Rally to Read Gqeberha - So many Starfish
Most South Africans will be familiar with the tale of the little girl and the starfish; for those that aren't, it is a parable about a little girl walking on the beach throwing starfish that had washed ashore back into the ocean. When asked why she was throwing the starfish back into the water when there were so many washed up and that it wouldn't make a difference, she replied that it made a difference to the starfish that ended up back in the sea.
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This story perfectly encapsulates what Rally to Read is all about. A few years ago, AutoTrader joined Ford South Africa on one of their first R2R outings in rural Mpumalanga. At that particular Rally, we saw first-hand what millions of school children have to deal with and the tiny spark of hope that the small offering of learning materials offered. The sheer scale of the problem seemed almost insurmountable, and one could not help but feel somewhat hopeless with the entire situation. After that event, we had wondered from time to time what had happened to those schools and children.
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The Rally to Read events are in three tranches over three years: in the first year, a school is found, and the first donations are delivered, focusing on the foundation phase of grades 1 through 3. The next year the Rally returns with the next book set, focusing on grades 3 through 5, and the last year is the final book set, that covers grades 5-7. We were privileged enough to see the first lot of deliveries on our first Rally but were left saddened by the odds that these kids were facing yet hopeful that these small donations of books and sporting equipment would, in some way, shape or form, help these kids.
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This years Rally was held in the windy city and would be the last year for the chosen schools on this go around. We made our way to Rocklands school in a pretty isolated and rural area that serviced the children of farmworkers in the region, this tiny farm school barely had enough space for 4 vehicles to park, yet it services 1200 learners who have truly benefited from the donation of these learning materials. The benefits that the learners have experienced go far beyond the fences of the school and have expanded into the community, helping not only learners but their parents as well. We heard of parents learning to read through their children's reading books, and community members getting involved with school activities and the care of the school.
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The highlight of the handover events at both Rocklands and David Savuka schools was the students who did readings for us. These children could barely read and write with understanding 2 years ago but now are able to read full stories and can tell you what the stories were trying to get across. This brings us back to the opening story; many folks out there may be asking why the Rally to Read organization is even bothering and the little that they are able to do won't help. We can now 100% confirm that, yes, it seems that they may be shouting against thunder, but to the kids at these schools and the surrounding communities, these actions have changed lives and continue to do so as new students run through the program and that is why this outreach must not be stopped because it may not make a massive difference right now but it has changed the life of many little starfish in rural South Africa.
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Ford has committed to continuing their partnership with the Read organization to bring learning materials to even more schools around South Africa and AutoTrader will be more than happy to attend these events to help bring the power of words to the disadvantaged youth.
