Newton Primary School boys received a powerful message of empowerment and leadership during a session hosted by the Tricia Survé Foundation.
Image: Chevon Booysen
The Tricia Survé Foundation, in collaboration with the AwqafSA Women's Fund, held a session called “Empowering the Boychild” for the boys of Newton Primary School in Wellington on Saturday.
The core messages delivered to the learners were about inspiration, hope, and perseverance.
The hall in Skool Street became a colorful hive of excitement and activity as the session was opened with an arts and crafts segment facilitated by Tasneem Chilwan, where the group of about 50 boy pupils painted their canvases with personal and positive affirmations.
The pupils and their parents were addressed by a line up of speakers, which included community leaders and Foundation founder Tricia Survé.
Survé shared her vision of wanting to help restore empowerment and positive attitudes.
“As someone who had grown up here, I had dreams, and with that, I had a lot of difficulties as well and that is how I learnt to overcome things I learnt to overcome by keeping on going.
“What I want you to take from today is to be leaders and not followers… A leader makes the right decision and does the right thing when no one is watching. So I encourage parents and pupils to keep that in mind. It's not a long list of things to do, it's just one thing,” said Survé.
ANC provincial leader Muhammad Khalid Sayed addressed pupils and their parents on leadership, accountability, and rising above their environment.
“Leadership does not start with a title. It starts with a choice, and because you are in Grades 6 and 7, you are at the perfect age for this. Not because you have learnt everything, but because you are learning what you want to be.
“Leadership is what you do when you think no one is watching you. A real leader makes people feel safe, not scared. A real leader makes a room better, not tougher, and a real leader has confidence without being cruel,” said Sayed.
School principal Jacques Clarke and Foundation founder Tricia Surve.
Image: Chevon Booysen
Speaking about rising above their environment, Sayed said: “Repeated choices become your future.”
“What does rising above look like in real life? It looks like choosing discipline when you want to give up, and it also looks like asking for help instead of pretending you are fine, and some people want to help.
“Programmes like these, which are being initiated by Tricia and her team, who want to help. It looks like being hungry to learn in class. One of the strongest things a boy can do is to choose good people and choose friends who pull you up and not ones who pull you into trouble… nobody rises alone,” said Sayed.
School governing body chairperson, Joe Lottering, shared his insights on building strong foundations for young boys.
Lottering shared a message of inspiration that the young boys are in one of their “most important seasons of their lives”.
“You are in a season of experiencing things where you are growing. A strong life is not built overnight; it's built slowly and brick by brick. Your foundation is made up of simple things: the way you treat others, the discipline you show when no one is watching, and the effort you give to hard things. We know things do get hard.
“When you fail or when you are left out and when you feel like giving up, that is when your character is being built. One day, your success will not be measured by what you achieve but who you become.
“To our parents: You are not just raising children, but you are raising supermen. It is the strong foundation at home that will always be more powerful than what life throws at them. Your sons are watching you more, and they listen to you. They are learning how to handle pressure and treat people. They don't need perfection; they need consistency. They need presence, and they need guidance, and most importantly, they need to know that no matter how far they go, they always have a place to come back to,” said Lottering.
The pupils and their parents were addressed by a line-up of speakers, which included community leaders and Foundation founder Tricia Survé.
Image: Chevon Booysen
Pupils were always motivated by interactive sessions with fitness studio entrepreneur Olivia Losper, who is an alumnus of the school. Losper shared insights on how to strengthen your body through fitness discipline and mental resilience.
Speakers at the session also included the school principal Jacques Clarke, founder of AwqafSA Women's Fund and former ambassador of Turkiye to South Africa, Aysegul Kandas, local spiritual leader Reverend Lyndon Mactavie, Africa Ago-Economic and Food Security executive Fertice Miller, and former South Africa Rugby Union (SARU) legend Faiek Hendricks.