by Chris Totobela
The young people of Transit Camp and Extension Eight had nothing to do after school, which resulted in many drowning themselves in drugs and alcohol.
Thandiswa Tinise, Vunyiwe Booi, Dideka Sandi, Feziwe Ralo, Anelisa Habana and Siphezintle Skade stepped in, forming a netball club to rescue the young girls from the situation.
The Makhanda Angels team has about twenty members with the under 13, under 16 and under 18 age groups, and they play matches every weekend.
Speaking to Grocotts Mail, the team’s public relations officer, Siphezintle “Timmy” Skade, was very excited about this new initiative. “We formed this team in October 2022 and never looked back and now the team is growing”.
The journey has not been smooth and the team still has no playing kit, balls or training equipment.
Skade said the team was appealing to the business sector and any good Samaritans out there to act in solidarity and assist Makhanda Angels with kit, bibs and balls.
The girls currently play in their own white t-shirts. “This will help us and motivate us to do even better in our games”, Skade said, adding that the teams have already been attracting huge crowds whenever they play.
The team of dedicated community builder women also help the girls with their school work. They’ve received a warm welcome and been embraced by the communities of Transit Camp and Extension Eight.
Makhanda Angels has proven to be a very good initiative for the residents. Growing rapidly, all they need now is the support of all those who have the power to make sure that this beautiful project is sustained. Hats off to these six women who took it upon themselves to make a change in their community through sport.
