MySchool Social Responsibility: The Thuso School and Village/Planet Fund
At MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet Thuso means "to extend a helping hand".
The Thuso School Fund and the Thuso Village/Planet Fund have been created by MySchool to support under-resourced schools and charities across South Africa. By selecting either the under-resourced Thuso School Fund or the Thuso Village/Planet Fund as your beneficiary, you have the opportunity to make a direct contribution to schools and charities who need it most. The funds raised for these beneficiaries are administered by MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet in accordance with our Corporate Social Investment policy.
The Thuso Fund is used to support the following main social development focus areas:
- Education needs, specifically within under-resourced and previously disadvantaged communities, such as school resources, training material, physical repairs and financial assistance.
- Social upliftment of orphaned, abandoned and vulnerable children and individuals with disabilities, specifically in benefit of charities and communities that are under-resourced and/or previously disadvantaged.
- Environmental initiatives and support and protect the natural ecosystems of our country and that aims to reduce our national carbon footprint.
- Animal protection and rehabilitation.
The Thuso School Fund is used to support special projects that address school and learner needs, such as fundraising projects, stationary donations, improved security, library books, new paint, financial assistance with projects, school renovations and equipment etc. Click here to apply for a card in support of the Thuso School Fund
The Thuso Village/Planet Fund is used to support charities that care for people, animals and the environment and will make a meaningful difference in these fields. Project to date have included the donation of hearing aids, visual aids for the blind, animal welfare improvements, donations towards conservation of endangered animals, makeovers for children’s orphanages, and donations towards charities that work with street children. Click here to apply for a card in support of the Thuso Village/Planet Fund
How to apply for funding from the MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet Thuso Funds
Registered schools and NGOs may apply for fuding and project support from the Thuso Fund. Applying for funding does not imply that funding will be approved. MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet initiates specific social investment projects, at our discretion and within our policy and strategy. We encourage organisations and schools to submit their proposals and request for consideration, but we retain the right to choose which projects and causes to support. We will contact you if your request has been approved.
Please complete the funding request form here.
Thuso Fund Projects To Date:
January 2012: Giving through Algoa Cares
Algoa FM, the radio station that covers PE and East London, have extended their reach to George!
They run a weekly programme on Wednesdays called ALGOA CARES where they chat live to a local charity or school in need and invite the local community to make donations of products, services and cash towards the charity. For example, last year, Loaves and Fishes organisation was on and people were calling in to pledge to donate food, the local Spar shop called to donate R500 and we also called in and donated R10 000!
We have started off this year by donating R5000 to Animal Outreaches through the Algoa Cares initiative. Animal Outreaches provides animal welfare assistance in township areas eg. vaccinations, sterilisations, health check ups, etc. What a cause! If you would like to support a similar organisation, check out our top Planets.
December 2011: R10 000 bonus to Cart Horse Protection Association
In the spirit of Christmas, we created a "gift that gives back" gift idea catalogue for our supporters to shop for an alternative gift for a loved one. We ran a VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE competition and asked people to send us their votes and we would reward the organisation who received the most votes with a R10 000 bonus. Majority of the votes were cast in favor of the Cart Horse Protection Association gift i.e. feed a cart horse for R355.
Congratulations to this worthy organisation. Read more of what they will be doing with the funds here.
December 2011: Our pledge to the Amy Biehl Foundation
The Amy Biehl Foundation has been a MyVillage beneficiary since 2007. This diverse and pro-active organisation has helped shape the lives of thousands of underprivileged children from the townships since it started back in 1994 through education, art and music.
To support their expanding footprint and the growing need, we have pledged to donate R4500 per month for the next 12 months to this outstanding organisation. This donation will enable this Foundation to spread more hope and joy to the youth of South Africa.
November 2011: Granting 6 Christmas wishes
We donated R10 000 each to six impoverished schools - through the YOU/ Huisgenoot Ubuntu feature. See the full article here.
November 2011: Another Christmas wish granted through KFm
Annually Kfm 94.5 puts out a call to action to listeners to nominate people who deserve a break. People write in requesting that “wishes” be granted to deserving people who are in need. KfM approached us to assist with sponsoring the student fees for a young learner currently studying food technology at the University of Technology. The student’s mother, Virginia Thys, is a cleaning person at a local hotel and has recently contracted a very serious illness. She is very weak and should not be working but continues to work in order to pay for her daughter’s study fees, travel fees etc. MySchool is set to sponsor the tuition fees for the daughter in order to remove the financial pressure from her mother. We also sponsored a R3 000 in Woolworths gift card to assist them with food and clothing for the Festive season.
October 2011: A playgym for St. Paul’s Primary School
St. Paul’s Primary School based in Cape Town, desperatly appealed to us to sponsor a much needed playgym. Thanks to the help of our supporters, who “liked” our facebook page, we were able to donate R5000 to the installation of this playgym.
October 2011: A Planet and Village receive a donation
This year, we decided to support the fundraising efforts of one our our Planet beneficiaries, The Society for Animals in Distress, and one of our Village beneficiaries, The National Council of the Blind - with a donation of just over R10 000 each. Both organisations arranged Fun Walks as a way to celebrate their work, unite their supporters and raise much needed funds to continue their community support.
October 2011: A R120 000 investment into our community leaders
Community of Learning Principals (CoLP) is an initiative founded by Symphonia of South Africa and the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences at the University of the Western Cape. This project aims to bridge the gap between principals and business leaders, and ensure that they partner together to effectively lead our community and diminish the current challenges at schools. We believe that the Principals of this country are worth investing into - their leadership abilities need to be developed and nurtured.
CoLP is focused on doing just this. Thanks to the Thuso School fund we were able to donate R120 000 to CoLP to ensure that they offer free leadership training and information sharing workshops in 2012 that will re-energise and focus these vital leaders within our community. We will keep you updated of events in 2012.
August 2011: Rooipan Primary School
Rooipan Primary School is situated on the farm Rooipan in the North West Province on the N14 towards Ventersdorp. The school consist of 2 classrooms and a small office that is also the library and kitchen. The school has long drops for bath rooms for the 43 learners currently attending.
Rooipan’s learners’ parents are farm workers and unemployed people living on the farms in the surrounding areas. This section 21 school (i.e. no school fees) receives a small subsidy from the Department of Education, however the subsidy hardly covers all the expenses of a school to give the learners optimum education, plus support the feeding scheme.
Many of the children in the surrounding area do not have transport to and from school. There are some children that walk up to 22km to get to school daily. The school has recently started a small boarding school for the children that have transport problems.
When we heard that the children were sleeping on the floor, MySchool decided to pitch in and donated 36 much-needed mattresses.
August 2011: Vissershok Container Classroom
MySchool proudly joined forces with the Woolworths Making the Difference Through Design Programme, Safmarine and Afrisam to transform an abandoned container into a much needed classroom for Grade R learners at Visserhok Primary School in Contermanskloof.
Grade 10 to 12 learners in the Western Cape were tasked to make over the container into a safe eco-friendly room that would inspire creativity, encourage learning and develop young minds – mission accomplished!
July 2011: Mandela Day celebrated with 93 children
International Nelson Mandela Day is celebrated on 18 July and the MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet team, together with our partner Woolworths, have joined hands with South African Airways and the Nelson Mandel Foundation to make this day a little bit brighter for 93 children from across the country.
Read the full story here.
June 2011: Extreme Makeover of Baphumelele Children’s Home
3 Days and over R1,6 million in renovations. This is what it took to transform this orphanage into a happy place and a dignified home for the 73 children who currently stay at Baphumelele Children’s Home. MySchool committed to the makeover initiative in partnership with Heart104.9FM and NewKidz on the Block (an NGO) and together we managed this extreme transformation.
June 2011: Community of Learning Principals
Schools are the centre of communities. Many social challenges that are faced in South Africa are directly related to the breakdown of communities. There are national debates around what needs to be done to improve the quality of schooling in South Africa. Through empowering school principals in the Western Cape we partnered with Symphonia for South Africa (an NGO) and the South Africans Principals Association (SAPA), to present the COLP (Community of learning principals) event. Experienced academics, business and community leaders will partner with school principals to get actively and enthusiastically engaged in the challenges faced in schools and to empower them to deal with these challenges.
Over a 100 principals attended the event. Discussion topics included personal profiling, school assessment, how to position schools at the centre of a community, and success stories/innovative ideas. School principals reported that this initiative empowered them in many ways, including making them even more determined to take up their leadership roles in communities for active change.
June 2011: Algoa Cares donations
Donation of R5 000 to Quest School in East London through the Algoa FM “Algoa Cares” initiative. Quest School is a deserving school servicing the local community with quality education, but due to financial strain are struggling to make ends meet. MySchool responded to their call for help through a cash donation which will be used for specific educational resources.
May 2011: MySchool with Woolworths pays it forward by giving away R100 000
On reaching their 100 000 facebook fans milestone, Woolworths approached MySchool to do a campaign to say "Thank you" to their fans and also to pay it forward. With the help of the MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet fundraising programme Woolworths created a facebook poll and asked their fans to vote for their top 10 favourite MyVillage MyPlanet charities. The TOP 10 MyVillage/MyPlanet charities with the most 'LIKES' on their logo received R10 000 each (Woolworths donating a total of R50 000 and MySchool R50 000 through the Thuso Fund). These are the charities that won the competition and received a much needed R10 000 donation each for the wonderful work that they do.
Position Votes Charity Name
1st 369 Highveld Horsecare Unit
2nd 325 NSPCA
3rd 203 Cart Horse Protection Association
4th 201 The Society for Animals in Distress
5th 187 EWT Myplanet Rhino Fund
6th 176 SA Guide Dogs Association for the Blind
7th 145 Border Collie Rescue
8th 141 SA MASS Animal Sterilization Trust
9th 128 SANCCOB Foundation
10th 108 Abraham Kriel Childcare
March 2011: Sponsorship to the Langa Youth Rugby Team
World Sports Events recently hosted the biggest inter-school sport week in South Africa at Stellenbosch’s famous Paul Roos Gymnasium. MySchool was part of the festivities and proud to sponsor R25 000 towards two teams from Langa. This donation paid for their travel and accommodation requirements. With over 130 teams participating in rugby, netball and hockey the weekend of sports was packed with opportunities for young stars to shine.
February 2011: Shine Centre for Literacy
The Shine Centre, a volunteer driven NGO in the Western Cape that provides literacy and language enrichment support to second language learners in Grades R to 3, received in excess of 284 books and a R20,000 donation from MySchool and kalahari.com. Read the full story here.
February 2011: Marianhill Junior Primary School Computer Room
MySchool spent in excess of R40, 000 to turn a converted cargo container into a functional facility for Mariannhill’s learners. Under the auspices of Principal, Mrs JR Mngadi, the learners of Mariannhill’s Junior Primary School saw the opening of their very own computer resource centre thanks to the MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet fundraising initiative. On the day of the handover event, MySchool made a further commitment to the school by announcing the programme would pay for teacher training and assist with ongoing maintenance and support of the facility to the value of R5, 000.
December 2010: Kfm Wish Bursary Sponsorship
The annual KfM Wish project has become a well-loved institution at MySchool. For the second year in a row we were able to fulfil a wish and help a young student complete his studies at University.
MySchool is sponsoring Warwick Vos’ R26 000 study fees for 2011, R10 000 for books and stationery, and has given him and his family a R4 000 Woolworths gift card to ensure they have a brilliant festive season. Once he has completed his degree (LLB Postgraduate) he will be a qualified patent attorney. His dream is to make a difference in South Africa wherever he goes, and prove that anything is possible.
November 2010: SPCA Wiggle Waggle Walkathon
For the 17th year running, hundreds of animal-lovers and their dogs participated in the SPCA Royal Canin Wiggle Waggle Walkathon on the 28 November 2010. In total there were 2,251 dog-walkers and 1,751 dogs that took part in the biggest organized dog walk in the Western Cape. This event raised R110 659, for abused, neglected and abandoned animals.
The MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet fundraising programme pledged to give R10 for every dog that participated in the Walkthon and therefore an additional R17,510 was donated to the SPCA – Cape of Good Hope (CoGH).
November 2010: Amy Biehl Foundation Fundraising Dinner
The Amy Biehl Foundation’s annual fundraising dinner was as successful as ever. The foundation used the event to highlight the great successes of the year past and also their plans for the future. The foundation is continuing to grow from strength to strength. Despite the successes however they still rely solely on the generosity and compassion of individual and corporate donors. MySchool donated R10 000 from the Thuso Village Fund in support of the township projects that they run, knowing that our money will be spent wisely and towards active youth development.
October 2010: SA National Council for the Blind Sponsorship
The International White Cane Safety Awareness Day Fun Walk, run and hosted by the SA National Council for the Blind, was a great success and MySchool donated R100 per registered entry (R16 700 was donated in total). The Council, in turn, promised to use these funds to make white canes more readily available to needy blind people for whom the cane is not only a vital tool for their daily lives, but also a symbol of their independence..
October 2010: Molelwane Primary School renovations
In May 2010 Molelwane Primary School in Fafung Village outside Brits, North West Province, approached us as a last resort to their desperate call for help. In September 2009, the school lost their roof in a terrible storm and has been operating without it since then.
This school serves the local township and rural community from the area and is attended by over 110 learners. We decided to help this needy school with over R90 000 in renovations.
July 2010: MySchool Celebrates Mandela Day
On Sunday, 18 July 2010, the world celebrated the 92nd birthday of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, former President of the Republic of South Africa and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
SAA flew 92 children (to celebrate 92 years of Madiba’s life) from the Qunu and Mvezo villages in the Eastern Cape to Johannesburg’s Nelson Mandela Foundation on Saturday 17 July to sing happy birthday to Madiba. The 92 children also presented him with birthday cards signed by the plane’s passengers. We donated over R40 000 worth of school wear, shoes, socks, underwear, warm tops and edible goodies for each child to take home in a lovely canvas bag. Read the full story here
June 2010: Play Gym Donation to Noah Ark
A play gym was donated by Toys R Us and MySchool to a local Johannesburg orphanage. It is ideal for the “ark” (as the home is called) as it provides the children with a safe and educational toy that will benefit the home for many years to come. The ark is home to orphaned, vulnerable and abandoned children from the local community and is dedicated to providing a safe and encouraging home for the youngsters.
Additional highlights of the day included the celebratory party sponsored by MySchool (including delicious hot dogs and party hampers).
April 2010: Bobs for Good Foundation Donation
Bobsforgood was founded by Bob Skinstad and Ron Rutland in 2009. It’s a 100% South African organisation, sourcing its suppliers and shoes from South African companies. The vision of the Bobsforgood foundation is to give every South African school child in need a pair of school shoes for that journey.
To assist with the project, MySchool donated R14 000 to the project, to buy shoes for needy children of the Eastern Cape.
March 2010: St George’s Home for Girls Extreme Makeover
With the help of Newkidz on the Block, an NGO specialising in extreme makeovers for dilapidated properties that are home to children in need, MySchool and Woolworths have transformed St George’s Home for Girls. The home is situated between Ottery and Wynberg in the Cape region and is currently the only residential care facility in the area that cares for abused, abandoned and homeless girls. St George’s Home has a legacy of more than 140 years and currently cares for up to 40 girls, aged between 3 and 18.
The Extreme Makeover saw the participation of various sub-sponsors and over 470 volunteers. 618 shifts were filled over the 4 and a half days during March. The transformation was dramatic and the house has become a home for the girls who live here.
2009: KfM Christmas Wish
Dean, a first year student from Cape Town University of Technology, has had a very tough year. His mother has passed away and his father is not actively involved in his live. He was struggling to make ends meet; living on a mattress in his aunt's house, working over weekends to pay his studies and volunteering with the ambulance services while completing his National Health Certificate.
His cousin wrote to KfM with a special wish that someone would help Dean. MySchool, through the Thuso School Fund, was able to offer Dean a sponsorship of R21 000 to complete his studies. This would pay for his study fees, the equipment he needs and his books.
November 2009: SPCA Cape of Good Hope Wiggle Waggle
The SPCA of the Cape of Good Hope held their biggest fundraising event, a massive doggie-walk, to raise funds for the year ahead. MySchool assisted, through the Thuso Village Fund, by committing a R10 donation for every dog that participated in the walk. A record amount of 1613 dog participated, and as a result MySchool donated R16 130 to this organisation.
November 2009: Amy Biehl Foundation Fundraising Dinner
The Amy Biehl Foundation is dreaming big. In 2010 they want to open new care units that are dedicated to taking children off the streets of Cape Town and give them new aspirations and dreams. The work they do within the townships surrounding Cape Town has been commended by the city. MySchool donated R7500 from the Thuso Village Fund in support of their biggest fundraising project of the year, their gala dinner.
October 2009: SARDA Charity Race Day
The SA Riding For the Disabled Association offers therapeutic and recreational horse riding for people with physical disabilities. The benefits for disabled horse riders with special needs are numerous, including improved physical, psychological and social functioning. MySchool donated R6 000 from the Thuso Village Fund in support of their biggest fundraising project of the year.
November 2008: Stationery Collection Drive for Ysterplaat Junior Primary
Ysterplaat Junior Primary School, Western Cape, was in desperate need of stationery for their pupils. We invited Cape Town residents to make a much needed donation to this local school: both old and new stationery was welcome! The donation was a great success. Over 20 large boxes of stationery were donated. MySchool also bought books and crayons for the school from the Thuso School Fund.
April 2009: Toy Donation Drive for Cotlands and Noah
Toys R Us and MySchool worked together to collect toys and baby goods for Cotlands and Noah orphanages and homes. The toys play a big part in holistic care and trauma counceling. The Thuso School Fund allowed us to reach Cotlands and Noah arks across the country to deliver more than 455 large boxes of toys to children that desperately need it.
Ongoing: Dinaledi "Shining Star" Schools
The Dinaledi schools have been identified by Government as schools that require additional resources to address their specific needs in advancing matchs and science development. The Thuso School Fund makes monthly cash contributions to two of these schools. In an effort to ensure this donation does not become a "hand-out" but a "hand-up", MySchool is also working closely with the school to help them gain more MySchool supporters, build better support networks in the local community and to ensure they empower themselves.
Ongoing: kalahari.com book donations
MySchool nominates schools and charities from the Thuso School Fund to benefit from the regular kalahari.com book donation drives. These donations have already benefited more than 5 schools, allowing most of them to establish a library for the very first time.
