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Shoes project
University of the Free State Biokinetics student, Maralé Hoft, with pairs of tackies they have collected so far for the needy kids of Eersteling Primary School. More donations are still needed.
She could not bear the sight of little children coming to school barefoot. So, a University of the Free State Biokinetics student went on a campaign to help find tackies for the children.

Touched by the sight of barefoot kids
Maralé Hoft encountered this situation when she and her colleagues went to the Eersteling Primary School to present sports-based physical activity programmes at the school as part of their curriculum programmes.

The school, which is located on the outskirts of Bloemfontein, about 10 kilometres from town in the Kellysview area, caters for children from Grade R (pre-school) to Grade 4, which are “obviously very young.”

“It became worse when we had to do some sports activities with them having no shoes on – I felt like I had to do something to help them,” she said.

More tackies still needed

Hoft says she has a target of about 100 children, but “we have so far only managed to get about 50 pairs of second-hand tackies.” 

“I would like to ask anyone who can contribute a pair of tackies for this age group to please do so, so that we could help the less privileged. Their shoe sizes range from size 10 (kids) to size 5 (regular),” she said.

Dr Monique de Milander, Lecturer in the Faculty of Health Sciences’ Department of Exercise and Sport Sciences, says: “All help will be most appreciated, as it would be ideal to have enough pairs to give every child a pair. We are worried that if we don’t have enough, we cannot give it to them, as it would not be fair if only a handful of children get a pair and the rest don’t.” 

Interested donors can contact Maralé Hoft at maralehoft@gmail.com

News Archive

UFS first to mechanise agricultural technique
2006-05-09

    

Small farmers from Thaba `Nchu were the biggest group attending the farmers day at the UFS Paradys experimental farm.  From the left are Mr David Motlhale (a small farmer from Thaba 'Nchu), Prof Leon van Rensburg (lecturer at the UFS Department of Soil, Crop and Climate Sciences and project leader), Mr Nhlonipho Nhlabatsi (Agricultural Research Council, Glen), Ms Meisie Mthethwa (small farmer from Bloemspruit).  In front is Mr Patrick Molatodi (chairperson of the Tswelopele Small Farmer Association).
 

 

Some of the participants of the farmers day at the UFS Paradys experimental farm were from the left Prof Leon van Rensburg (lecturer at the UFS Department of Soil, Crop and Climate Sciences and project leader, Mr Patrick Molatodi (chairperson of the Tswelopele Small Farmers Association) and Prof Herman van Schalkwyk (Dean: UFS Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences).

UFS first tertiary institution in world to mechanise agricultural technique
The University of the Free State (UFS) is the first tertiary institution in the world to mechanise the in-field rain water harvesting technique on a commercial scale.

The technique was recently demonstrated to about 100 small farmers at the UFS Paradys experimental farm outside Bloemfontein. 

“With this technique rain water is channeled to the plant and in this way food security is increased.  The advantage of the technique for commercial farmers lies in the reduced cultivation of land.  Small farmers will benefit from this because they can now move out into the fields and away from farming in their back yards,” says Prof Leon van Rensburg, lecturer at the UFS Department of Soil, Crop and Climate Sciences and project leader.    

Rain water harvesting is an antique concept that was used by communities before the birth of Christ.  In South Africa the technique is mainly used in the plots of small farmers where they make surface structures by hand. 

"The technique is also used for the first time by the UFS on commercial scale by means of the cultivation of a summer crop on 100 ha at the Paradys experimental farm,” says Prof Leon van Rensburg,

Of the farmers who attended the farmers day most represented about 42 rural communities in the vicinity of Thaba ‘Nchu.  A group of seven from KwaZulu-Natal also attended the proceedings.  These small farmers can for example apply this technique successfully on the 250-300 ha communal land that is available in the Thaba ‘Nchu area. 

The project is funded by the UFS and the National Research Foundation (NRF) and the farmers’ day was funded by the Water Research Commission.   

Media release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Media Representative
Tel:   (051) 401-2584
Cell:  083 645 2454
E-mail:  loaderl.stg@mail.uovs.ac.za
9 May 2006

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