Florida paddler making a difference in childrens’ lives
Holiday bootcamp a huge success
The Florida Lake Canoe Club (FLCC) was a beehive of activity recently, as about 40 excited children came together to learn some new skills.
Shaun Maphanga from the FLCC and Nkosi Mzolo from the Soweto Canoe and Recreation Club (SCARC) organised a life-skills camp, which was attended by a number of children from Soweto. “The children were all under 18 years of age, and, in conjunction with First Rand, we invited them them to the FLCC, where they attended our week-long boot camp,” Shaun explained.
He added that the aim of this camp was not only to get these children off the streets and to keep them busy, but also to teach them some valuable skills. “We didn’t just teach them about paddling – we also had some professional people who attended, including a psychologist, a dietitian and a couple of sport fitness experts. We engaged them in various games and team-building activities such as canoe polo, playing the drums as well as dragon-boat racing. They were also shown how to do CPR,” Shaun said.
All the children received a certificate at the end of the camp, in recognition of their newly acquired skills.
Shaun concluded by saying, “We would love to host one of these camps for the children every school holiday, but unfortunately they cost a lot of money. If we had more sponsors and donations, we would be able to make more of a difference.”
For more information, contact Shaun on 076 526 8833 or send an email to smaphanga@gmail.com.
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