Media Release. 3 October 2011. Rheenendal Primary School

The headmaster of the Rheenendal Primary School - which was hit by tragedy on August the 24th when a bus in which some of its learners were travelling crashed into a river, killing the driver and 14 children - has thanked the people of South Africa for their generous support.

Samuel Williams said that he and his community have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support which has come from every quarter of the country.

A fund set up in the immediate aftermath of the accident by the local newspaper, the Knysna Plett Herald, has received more than R500,000 in cash and pledges and, said Mr. Williams, food, clothing, blankets, school equipment, and offers of help have been received from people from around the country.

“Every phone call, fax, e-mail, and letter, and every bunch of flowers means more to us than the senders will ever know,” he said.

Mr. Williams said that a second fund was established by the school itself to cover the costs of two funeral services which were attended by some 7,500 mourners from across the Province. “Since the number of mourners greatly exceeded the number we originally anticipated, there unfortunately remains a deficit of around R100,000, which the school is presently trying to raise.

“As you can imagine, the funeral period was a particularly difficult time for us, and we’re very grateful for all the help from the volunteers and caterers, and from the people who supplied the marquee, the stage, the chairs, the public address system, and the flowers.

“Unfortunately, we weren’t able to make use of all the offers we received because - in the case of coffins, for example, we’d already been given everything we needed.”

Mr. Williams said that all of his staff and all the children at the school have been given professional counseling, that psychologists have been available on call to help parents in the community, and that his teachers recently attended a spiritual healing weekend.

Rheenendal Primary, which Mr. Williams runs with the help of vice-head Jacobus America, 22 teachers and four support personnel, has an enrolment of 743 learners from one of the poorest communities in the Knysna area.

“With the help we’ve received, we now have the opportunity of growing Rheenendal Primary into a model school,” said Mr. Williams.

“There’ve been no barriers in this tragedy - help has come from people of every colour and every level of society, and we have no way of adequately thanking everyone who has made a contribution,” said Mr. Williams.

He said that the funeral service fund - which is audited by Mazars - is operated under the strictest criteria of transparency, responsibility, and accountability. Contributions to assist with the outstanding costs of the funerals can be paid into the Moores Rowland Trust, Nedbank account number 1091096236 (branch code 109114, reference: Bus Tragedy).

More information:

  • Rheenendal Primary School: Mr. Samuel Williams; Telephone 044 389 0013; e-mail head [at] rheenendal.wcape.school.za
  • Community enquiries and general assistance: Ilse de Beer; telephone 044 388 4622; e-mail kirstil [at] mweb.co.za

ENDS

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