Bracken High will get its R750 000 netball court....Vumani Bo!!

VUMANI BOOOO!!!!

As the ancestor of Bracken High class of 2000. I want to prophecy.... So,can I get an Amen!!! From the readers of this blog. Those who are Christians and those who are not....Just say, Aaaamen!!!! Or better yet, can we do this the African style way....I say, Vumani Bo!!!

Can all those who believe that the ancestors of South Africa can make things happen, say Siyavuma. I say, Vumani Boo!!! Well my fellow readers, a couple of months ago. My son and I visited Bracken High school... Vumani Bo!!! On our visit, we met a young white gentleman by the name of of Nick Nunes.... Vumani Bo!!! Nick is the founder of Go Alumni. This is an online platform that is set up to link past and present learners of the school based in Alberton Area, Gauteng South Africa....Vumani Bo!!!

This gentleman, who also hails in the Alberton area, told us of his plans to revive the now deteriorating Bracken High School structure with the help of past students... Vumani Bo!!! According to annonymous sources of the blog, since I left the school and the province in early 2000s.

Alliens and witches who could not even speak English invaded the area and run down the school...Vumani Booo!!! Former teachers were bullied and left powerless when they tried to confront the alliens and those that remained couldn't really speak or had any one to turn to about the alliens abuse of power....Vumani Booo!!! The Alliens did as they wished, running the beloved school to the ground and only to hand it over to the newly appointed principal, Mr Mochaki in the shadow of its former glory. It is said that MR Mochaki has done many things in the school since his appointment in 2023 this includes the upgrade of the entrance of the school. On top of Mr Nick Nunes to do list is the upgrade of a netball court of the school. On the Go Alumni page, almost R5 000 has been raised and he is calling on all former student to come and help make the netball dream come true. "It doesnt matter how much you contribute, it could be R100 monthly" said Nunes who is planning a reunion for former learners soon. To date, the site has registered about 196 Alumni from the school that was formed in 1981 with the aim of being an institution of excellence, dedicated to producing responsible well rounded and capable citizens like me. I was straight out of Woolhope High in Malabar, Port Elizabeth when I joined the school in 1998.

Having been a grade A students in Mathematics and Science in the Indian school for two years 1996 and 1997. This after running away in Gauteng When a former Afrikaans school, Help My Kaar in Braamfontein,now known as Rand Girls High was forcing me to repeat grade eight also known as standard six even though I had passed. The school then had a programme called standard six bridging class. Clever and intellegent me, who had passed with flying colours at my art primary school...The Open School On the Move in down town Johannesburg.

The same student who attended Saturday classes at PACE senior secondary school in Jabulani Soweto. The girl who went to Christian camps to learn how to swim in order to be prepared for the former white school. As well as assisted by senior mathematics studdents at Youth Alive Ministries Dube Soweto in order to cope at these schools was told in January of the school beginning that I have failed a year that I haven't even started studying. Yes, I stick it out for 12 months thinking the teachers and the department of education had made some mistake or it was a test but when that report came saying I passed standard six bridging class, I went looking for a school that was serious about me doing the next grade. So I said bye bye to Johannesburg and hello Port Elizabeth. Luckily for me, the Indian school welcomed me with open arms like all the other students. Boy, I did excell in both grade nine and ten with mathematics and science my majors. I still had an attitude towards Afrikaans and this together with the change of province, culture, language and everything else affected my grade 11 class. Mr McKelvin who had done my interview to the school had predicted my failure and the everything that might cause it. There was no arguing with him at the end of that year. I had seen for my self where I was battling.

I had not chosen Geography out of interest. I took computer science even when I had no computer at home and couldn't do the home work or understood it. I had an attitude towards Afrikaans and it was a the school's second language so to say, I had failed it made sense to me. I was battling the whole year. I knew now I needed to drop the computer science subject because I couldn't do the homework nor understood it. I changed Geography to Business Economics because I have always been a business person and it made sense to do business than geography. I still understood maths and science and received good results in both subjects plus they were easy for me so keeping them also made sense. All in all, this was a failure that was out of love and correction. The standard six failure for me then was out of hatred and was not explainable, it was dictated and no matter how much I improved my results during that year still the witches had forseen the future and my God was refusing to bow down.

Coming to Bracken high though, the Alumni has registered 196 students to date. Nick want to create a school legacy by helping the school either raise funds or anyone with skills to do anything come and volunteer. There are planned Alumni programmes that will kick off next year. This includes the reunions of all the ancestors from 1981 when the school was established.

English is not my mother tongue

IT took a lot for me to gather courage and blog today. I mean so much has happened and critics have been on my case on the blog, the grammar and spelling errors in my other posts. So much had been said to the point that, I my self lost the confidence and focus of why the blog was started in the first place. First and foremost, it was so that I can continue write African Stories.

Especially positive stories coming out of the hood or black community of South Africa. The second point was that, I as a beneficiary of many youth empowerment project that were ran in the 90s and saw me benefit from them, I would also go back to centres like, Youth Alive, Teen Out Reach and the Gifted Child Programme and maybe schools around to teach and learn from the new generation how stories are told. Of course, English is the universal language but growing up in South Africa before our democracy, I always had an attitude towards it and Afrikaans. Thanks to the legacy of former statesman and hero of the struggle and not to mention both my parents who were active during their time with African National Congress (ANC), I was amongst the first group of black student to be enrolled at Rand Girls High, a formerly white school but when the government got rid of the apartheid policy it took in black students for the first time in 1996. Apast from that, I also went to one of the premium high schools in Gauteng, Bracken High School prided itself with 100 % matric pass rate during my time and it has continue with this record over the years. But not only that, it was in this school that I learnt to read and write proper English. Our English teacher was so creative that she would go as far as letting us watch inspirational film in order to register a point through.

Yes, I was amongst those kids who studied George Owell's animal farm, Mac Beth, Cry the beloved country, The Suit and Boesman and Lena in my English class and I really got good symbols too considering that it was not my home language and I was doing it on higher grade. What is my home language you may ask? Well, I am a mixed breed that was manufactured at a time that black people were rebellious towards apartheid as a result I do not have an English ie slave name. My father is a Zulu man and if you read Trevor Noah's book, born a crime, you will know that Zulus are proud warriors who once fought the colonial armies that invaded South Africa centuries ago with spears and shield. Of course, they were murdered in thousands but they never stopped fighting. My mother though is from another tribe, Amampondo which are also associated with Xhosas. Nelson Mandela and Mama Winnie are also from this tribe. They are known to be thinkers and they've also tried their luck with the colonisers and lost. But their approach however was learning the language of the Whiteman so that they will be able to negotiate with them. Anyway, in the height of apartheid my parents formed me. I'm still not sure if they were trying to send out a message to the white man that black people are united when the mission was to divide and rule the black nation then. Anyway, knowing this little history might give you as a reader a reason why, I write the English language the way I do on this blog. I mean for 12 years, I was very professional. Oh, no it's not even 12 years. It is more than that when I count the years at school and my stint at PE Technikon, the creative and journalism qualifications I obtained at Intec College. Before I embarked on a 12 year long career as a print journalist. I started at a community newspaper and received a national within six months of being in the game. I then wrote for The Herald but the stories were also shared by Dispatch,Sowetan and many other titles under the then Tiso Black Star. Before I left the company, I counted six awards. Two were regional and the other four were national. While the other were a team work, my first and my last stories which got national nods were a sole project. I even went as far as honouring, Mr Drum, a well known journalist who went all out to tell the truth under the difficult banner of apartheid. Now, if Im so educated and have had the status quo "Black by nature, proud by choice" on my Facebook profile for over a decade now. By the way, that was stolen from Nelson Mandela. Why would I be shaken by what other people say about me. Because of what they say, do I then forget that I grew up surrounded by educated black men who encouraged me to take education seriously. Of which I did and still do as I enrolled for law at Unisa and did the Social media marketing and Blogging through Shaw academy as well as learning other creative ways of telling stories. Why can't I then do what I want to do without caring what the other person say, especially if the criticism is not to build you but rather pull you down. Why can't I be like Steve Biko and just write what I like? Anyway if you like my work please follow me on instagram:Khanyiswasa Facebook: Khanyiswa Ndabeni You Tube: Khanyi Ndabeni Twitter: @Ndabenik I'm more than just a writer, I'm an aspiring actress and tv talk show host. I also make and sell African jewellery

Club DJ & Car Spinner Wears Ndabeni Creatives

I recommend Ndabeni Creative with every bone in my body

We haven't spoken for over 18 years, but when my Bracken High School and Youth Alive friend, Nalo FancyFace Jivhuho heard about our start up, she showed us love. This club dj and female car spinner is seen wearing our screw simple wooden piece at a wedding in Orlando, Soweto. This is what she said about us... "I purchased my beads from Ndabeni Creatives, from day 1 she was hands on, she asked me to choose my preferred colours and sent different samples for me to choose from. 

I'm so happy and cannot wait to wear my black number that I bought from her as well. 

I recommend Ndabeni Creatives with every bone in my body🏾🏾"