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		MATHABANE.COM MAKING A DIFFERENCE
HOME Order Books Arrange Lectures Free Articles Sponsor a Student Order Serialized Chapters The Poet's Corner Famous Speeches Vocabulary Builder World News PREFACES Kaffir Boy Miriam's Song African Women Love in Black & White Deadly Memory The Last Liberal FIRST CHAPTERS Kaffir Boy Ubuntu Kaffir Boy in America Miriam's Song African Women Love in Black & White Deadly Memory The Last Liberal DUST-JACKET & REVIEWS Kaffir Boy Kaffir Boy in America African Women Love in Black & White CONTACT E-mail Feedback Author's Bio		THE MAGDALENE MATHABANE SCHOLARSHIP FUND Message from Mark: Hi. Let me briefly explain the purpose of The Magdalene Mathabane Scholarship Fund. First, its named after my beloved mother. Those of you who've read Kaffir Boy, my autobiography, will remember that my mom was denied the opportunity to attend school because she was a girl. Yet she so believed in the value of an education that she struggled and sacrificed a great deal to get me educated. She endured beatings and humiliation to enroll me at Bovet Community School -- the school whose students the fund is earmarked to help. Most of these students come from destitute families who live in shacks with no running water, electricity or indoor toilets, the same conditions I overcame. I vividly remember how often my mom had to sacrifice food money (my dad earned about $10 a week as a menial laborer) to buy me books, uniform and to pay my school fees. If I hadn't gone to school I'd have ended up a thief, a gangster or I'd be dead. Principal Khosa with two students who were outfitted and whose school fees were paid for by the Magdalene Mathabane Scholarship Fund Having experienced firsthand how education can transform and empower lives, I have pledged a portion from each book I sell to help needy students like the two girls pictured above who attend Bovet. I invite you to support The Magdalene Mathabane Scholarship Fund. No donation is too small. Even students can help by donating some of their pocket money. The scholarship fund pays for uniforms, books, school fees and other needs impoverished students have. These students remind me so much of myself when I was young. They have so much drive, determination and resilience -- all they need is an opportunity. You can give them that opportunity. Their community, families and South Africa needs their contributions as leaders, trained workers and responsible adults. They can become all that and more if you give generously to the scholarship fund. Thanks for believing in the power of education to change and save lives.

		ABOUT BOVET COMBINED SCHOOL I attended Bovet for the first eight years of my life. So did all of my six siblings. Back then, the school was known as Bovet Community School. It was founded by the Swiss Mission Church, and have educated some of the best brains in South Africa. The school is very poor in resources but very rich in dedicated teachers and pupils. Teachers at Bovet. Two of them (second and third from left) taught me. Mr. Tiba was my 8th grade teacher, and Mrs. Maluleke was my 2nd grade teacher. Remarkably, many of the teachers who taught have remained at Bovet rather than be enticed away by lucrative offers from well-endowed schools. They stayed because they believe that the pupils who attend Bovet, though mostly from poor family, are among the brightest in South Africa. With your generous donation, you can help unleash the potential of these students, so they can claim their rightful place as leaders of the new South Africa. LETTER FROM PRINCIPAL "We will appreciate it if you can help us in any way possible to upgrade our school. Although our school is new and beautiful on the outside, it is empty on the inside because we don't have resources...At the moment we are desperately in need of a big photocopier which can cater to 1,016 pupils. Due to the lack of this machine, we cannot issue handouts to the pupils and that affects our teaching. We do not have a library or library books. In this computer age, we do not have a single computer. The needs are so vast, especially when you think that these kids will have to compete with kids from white advanced schools when they face the real world." — M.M. Khosa, Principal To make a donation to The Magdalene Mathabane Scholarship Fund please send a check or money order to the following address: The Magdalene Scholarship Fund 1320 NW Frazier Court Portland, OR, 97229 top of page All Rights Reserved. Copyright © 2001 mathabane.com