Spreading winter warmth

MORGENSTER Primary School learners were given winter jackets, beanies, scarves and a warm meal thanks to the SA National Zakah Fund (Sanzaf)’s Operation Winter Warmth campaign.

The school in Hanover Park has 1 000 learners and 80% may not have brought something from home to eat for lunch on any given day.

This was according to deputy principal Mylene Smith as she welcomed the Sanzaf campaign to the school.

Smith said learners were from the surrounding areas, including Pooke Road and Flamingo Road informal settlements, or were backyard dwellers.

“These are learners who mostly come from single or grandparent-lead households, where they live off social grants perhaps, and there are often too many people to feed.

‘‘At our school we have the Peninsula feeding scheme, which is only for 150 children, and we try to stretch this to feed as many as we can,” she said.

Smith said the staff themselves, along with their family and friends, often contributed to help provide more meals for the school’s learners.

Morgenster Primary head of foundation learning Sharon Raphael said current learners were the children of former learners, many of whom had fallen into negative practices, including using drugs and alcohol, leaving very little, if anything, for school lunches.

The learners were all excited at the special treats they received on a cold, wet morning, singing and grinning with glee as they received their sweets and winter gear.

Project manager Aneesah Rylands said Morgenster Primary was the second school at which they had made donations during their Operation Winter Warmth campaign, and the response had been heart-warming.

“The winter packs and meals are all made possible through zakah (religious offering) or generous donations from the public, which are greatly appreciated.

‘‘This will be the last school, as winter is coming to an end, but the remaining packs will be donated to other deserving areas,” Rylands said. She said as a new Islamic year approached, new projects would be undertaken, as the organisation used the zakah throughout the year in various ways, including outreach programmes, study bursaries and feeding schemes.

For more information on how to get involved with the Operation Winter Warmth campaign, contact Sanzaf at 021 447 0297 or see www. sanzaf.org.za.