Discipline, prayer pulled me through
STAR College Boys matriculant Shanaelin Darian Govender has described his mother, Rhona, a single parent, as his “everything”.
“My mom’s support has been outstanding. I cannot say how grateful I am to her,” said Shanaelin, who attained seven As, missing out on the elusive eighth distinction in English.
He has been provisionally accepted at several universities to study actuarial science, but is swaying toward relocating to Johannesburg.
“I want to leave home. I’m ready for change. I have family there and my mom is more than happy to relocate,” said the 17-year-old, who lives in Pinetown. His mom is an operations manager at Grinrod Bank, while his 19-year-old sister, Larushka, who matriculated at Star College Girls in 2016, is a second-year clinical medical practice student at the University of Pretoria.
Shanaelin said he generally attained an A in English and a B in Afrikaans and was surprised when the final results were swapped. He said it was not a train smash, but would nevertheless send his English paper for remarking.
“Discipline and prayer pulled me through, as well as sacrifice. I missed out on family functions and had to often get up early in the morning for tuition. I dedicated my life to school.”
It has certainly paid off.