The Buffelshoek TrustSep 27, 2011
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Campbell, Sidney, and I
Shanty Town
| Though I did not go to any museums or on any tours Monday, it may have been my favorite day so far. This is because I finally got to meet the people from Buffelshoek Trust, which is the NGO that helped me with the Dixie Water Project. Sharon and I went to tea in the morning with her friend Mary. This was so much fun as Mary was extremely interested in my trip and what I am doing. I enjoyed myself so much that I was shocked when two hours had passed and it was time to go! We drove to Sandton where Sharon dropped me off at the Buffelshoek Trust office. As soon as I walked through the doors, I fell in love with the place. Everyone there was so nice and so welcoming. I’m not going to lie, when I got there I was shaking with nerves. I have waited to so long to meet these people and I was so worried that I wouldn’t live up to their expectations or vice versa. But when I met Shehnaz, she was so friendly and welcoming that I felt right at home. When I arrived, the woman who is replacing Shehnaz (she is moving to England for her husband’s job) introduced me to Shehnaz and the three of us sat in her office and talked for awhile. They were the kindest people I’ve ever met. I’ve always known I wanted to start my own NGO, but being in those offices and talking to these amazing people that have dedicated their careers to helping others made me absolutely positive that I want to do the same. As the three of us were talking Campbell, another person involved in Buffelshoek Trust, showed up and joined us. The four of us continued to chat until Sidney Frankel (the man who started the Trust) was ready to go to lunch. Shehnaz had to stay behind for a meeting, but Sidney took Campbell and I out to lunch at Bella’s.Not only was the food at Bella’s delicious, but the company was unbeatable. One of the first things Sidney said to me was, “I have to say Sarah, I am a bit in awe of you.” I found it a bit ironic as I am extremely in awe of him. He is pretty much living the life I want to live. Everything he has done is absolutely amazing and I hope that some day I will be able to accomplish as much has he has. We spent the lunch talking about my trip, how I raised the money for the water project, and all about the Trust. I had such a great time with them and the entire day all I could think about is how much I want to live their lives! Maybe if I’m lucky, some day I will. After lunch Sidney and Campbell dropped me off at Nelson Mandela Square where I met up with Sharon. We went to a very fun curio shop in the mall and then drove back to her house. We chose to take the long way home and drive through Diepsloot, a large shanty town housing nearly half a million people. When we got back to her house we relaxed until after dinner. Then we went to a theater that shows independent films and saw First Grader, a powerful movie based on the true story of an 84 year old Kenyan man who went to public school in 2008 when Kenya opened free education for all. When the movie was over we came straight home and went to bed. It was such an inspiring day and it made me so excited for not only the upcoming six months but everything that I hope to do after that as well. |
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