Schools roll up their sleeves to help

NELSON Mandela famously said education was the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.

And last week Thursday to mark his birthday schools paid tribute to him by doing something special for others during the 67 minutes for Mandela Day.

Pupils at Surrey Estate Primary school got their hands dirty.

In just four hours they transformed 140 metres of soil squared into a smorgasbord of vegetable seedlings as part of their tribute to celebrate Mandela’s 95th birthday.

Pupils worked side by side with 20 volunteer horticulturists from nurseries to create the garden.

The newly established vegetable garden is part of a sustainable food programme started by the school’s principal, Imtiaz Adams.

He was concerned about the high percentage of pupils between the ages of 5 and 14 who arrived hungry every day.

“We all know you can’t teach a hungry child,” he says.

So as part of their commitment to giving back on Mandela Day, Western Cape- based nursery group, Stodels Nurseries, joined forces with Okuhle Media and Hectic Nine-9 to create a sustainable food garden at the school in Athlone.

He says the fresh vegetables and produce from the garden will go a long way to supplying the school’s feeding scheme and soup kitchen and the local community will be invited to enjoy the veggies in return for a little watering and weeding.

The horticulturists helped the pupils to prepare the soil, plant the seedlings and put together an annual planting plan to ensure there would be a continuous and sustainable supply of vegetables such as carrots, spinach, broccoli, cabbage and lettuce. They also supplied the compost, fertiliser, seedlings, plants and expertise.

“We were thrilled to be part of this project which uses our core knowledge of ‘eating from your garden’ to make a difference in the lives of these learners and their families,” said Stodels managing director Nick Stodel.

“Surrey Estate Primary School has, despite financial constraints, continued to deliver good results academically, culturally and through its sporting code,” says Paula Brown, chief executive of

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