I’ve witnessed first hand, and been an insignificant part of something beautiful being birthed between a few people, to the future benefit of many. Its songo.info – buy kilometers build bmx track. Its building a future in many forms for the kids of Kayamandi, a Stellenbosch Township. Through the bmx track, and all that accompanies it, JAG Foundation will have a means to touch the lives of kids for the positive.
My Love is managing the project on behalf of Christoph Sauser, current world marathon mountain bike champion, together with their partner on the project, the JAG Foundation – Jointly Achieving Growth. Its been a crazy opportunity for Ruth, one she’s grabbed with both hands and dragged herself with it to the deep end.
Sauser has asked Burry Stander, South Africa’s best mountain biker, to ride the Absa Cape Epic with him. It’s a pair race across 950km’s from Knysna to Lourensford. The two will be riding for songo.info, and promoting the initiative with every means they have.
The fundraising initiative races them in virtual space, buy selling off each of the 950km’s the riders have to ride. I’m hoping songo.info beats them to the line.
But the ones that count, are the kids in Kayamandi. I’ve only ever been into Kayamandi a few times, and like most South African’s I find it easier to block out the realities of township life. Ruth’s gone into the township a few times of late, and its moving hearing her experiences from within. Space is limited, and opportunities are few. There is little means to escape the thoughts of primitive survival. Little exposure to an outside world worth aspiring to. Seldom a chance to have fun, to express talent and develop a skill.
Songo.info believes it can influence hundreds of kids, by building a bmx track, managing containers of bikes and helmets, and leveraging this simplistic park to inspire, to encourage, to create hope, and perhaps even to nurse a future world bmx champion.
What’s moved me most, was Ruth telling me of her a walk with Songo in Kayamandi, and having some locals asking him why a white girl is here. He’d reply that it was in connection with the bmx track, and they’d all just nod. There’s been an expectation for years. Like many other promises in their lives. When Ruth asked some kids for suggestions in naming the project, a few suggested Songo, with the motivation that he is the only one who ever does anything for them. A different world so close to my own…
Go to songo.info now, and read more on the project and donate today.
