A Celebration of Giving Back
Bertie Lubner’s legacy lives on and continues to inspire young people to pay it forward…
One year since its inception over 100 alumni from Afrika Tikkuns Alumni Programme adopted Bertie Lubner Week, held in the week of the late Afrika Tikkun founder’s birthday from 11 – 15 March. It is a week dedicated to encouraging volunteerism by young people and its mandate: to provide an opportunity for alumni members to give of their time and celebrate the philanthropic legacy of Bertie Lubner that benefited so many young people through Afrika Tikkun’s Cradle-to-Career 360 programmes.
Lindiwe Mabuya, a twenty-year-old alumni committee member from Phuthaditjaba Centre in Alexandra Township commented that “Bertie Lubner’s legacy provided a scope of what it means to change lives and make a difference in poor communities”, and 27-year-old Sizwe Tshabalala, Alumni President at the Arekopaneng Orange Farm Centre says the aim is to “inspire more young people to honour Bertie Lubner’s legacy and give back, in order to build a better South Africa”.
On the first day of the celebration week alumni members created content about Bertie Lubner’s background and his life’s work. Each Afrika Tikkun Centre in Johannesburg and Cape Town then curated a museum exhibiting this content for Afrika Tikkun’s young people within the Early Childhood (ECD), Child and Youth (CYD) and Career Development (CDP) programmes. They also sang a famous birthday song and partook in a number of activities around his special day.
On the second day of Bertie Lubner Week, the alumni organized a service day for all participants within the ECD programmes. Volunteer roles included reading stories for children, assisting ECD teachers with lessons, helping to tidy the Centre’s learning rooms after sessions and assisting in kitchen chores.
On the third day, alumni members organized another service day; this time for the CYD programme. Volunteers aided in lesson planning for after school homework and learning activities, they assisted ushering young people into learning rooms, prepping them for homework and assisting with school assignments. Again, at lunch time they assisted kitchen staff with preparing food and laying out tables.
Day four entailed another service day that assisted with prepping learning rooms and supported kitchen staff for the CDP programme. Most of the volunteers shared their personal stories as well as experiences within the CDP programme. With these young adults they had the opportunity to engage, share and exchange ideas, experiences and their future aspirations.
On the final day of Bertie Lubner Week alumni members engaged in activities centered around Afrika Tikkuns garden projects. Each Centre boasts bountiful gardens that produce greens and fruit, which contribute towards the nutrition and food supply for all Centre’s and beneficiaries. Alumni assisted in the maintenance, planting and harvesting of the garden, and the food harvested on the day was used to prepare meals for the Centre’s young people.
Onyi Nwaneri, Group Executive of Strategic Partnerships and Marketing at Afrika Tikkun says, “We were very pleased to see our alumni put this proposal on the table of their own accord. They made the decision on their own and then they made it their own. We were very proud to see their organisational and creative skills come in to play, as well as their theme of “giving of one’s talents, treasure and time” as exemplified by our late founder Bertie Lubner. Through our alumni his legacy lives on.”
Khanya Sibanda, the 20-year-old Alumni President from Uthando Centre in Braampark says she “enjoyed organizing the Bertie Lubner Week celebration for our alumni members because it was a time to give back to the Centre’s and pay it forward”. Likewise, Busisiwe Khosa, and alumni member from the Wings of Life Centre in Diepsloot says “inspiring young people to pay it forward is one of the best things you can do”.
In addition to Bertie Lubner Week each Centre dedicated a mural to Bertie Lubner, currently decorating the main halls and passages in the respective Centre’s. In the continued spirit of celebrating Bertie Lubner, the murals will be displayed at the Annual Talent Day on 20 July 2019 culminating in Afrika Tikkun’s 25 years legacy celebration.
For more information on Afrika Tikkun and their initiatives call 011 325 5914, email info@afrikatikkun.org or visit www.afrikatikkun.org.