Pupil decides to act against Xenophobia

Pupil decides to act against Xenophobia By Botho Molosankwe Grant Coller is only 13 years old but when xenophobic violence erupted, leaving thousands of foreigners displaced, this Northcliff youngster took action. After seeing all the visuals of people who had been beaten, killed and chased away from their homes, he wanted to help the victims and decided to make a difference. A raffle, he thought, would be the best way to make money, and he targeted his peers at Cliffview Primary School after his father helped him draw up some raffle sheets. 'What's nice about this is that kids paid out of their own pocket money' After making his decision and letting the principal know about his intention, Grant took the podium at the school assembly one morning and told his fellow pupils that he was raising funds for the xenophobic violence victims and was going to hold a raffle. A ticket was R3, but they could get three for R5. The prizes were two netball balls and two soccer balls. After that, the work began. Grant, who had only four days to raise the money, had to juggle his studies with collecting the raffle money. As the violence happened during the exams, he did not want to bother the teachers who had a lot on their plates at the time. Money started trickling in - 20c, 10c - it all went towards the fund. Although he admits that it was hard, Grant said he was proud of himself. He came up with the whole idea and did everything himself. In the end, Grant raised R3 000 - all of which he has donated to The Star's xenophobia fund. "I think I've done quite a lot and what's nice about this is that kids paid out of their own pocket money," said the Grade 7 pupil. His mother, Michelle, said Grant had been terribly upset by the visuals on the violence. "He had only four days and it took a toll on him, but never once did he complain. He was focused and did it maturely. I am a very proud mom," 42-year-old Michelle said. Grant, whose parents helped him count the coins, lambasted xenophobia and its perpetrators. This article was originally published on page 7 of The Star on June 23, 2008 Published on the Web by IOL on 2008-06-23 05:51:00 © Independent Online 2005. All rights reserved. IOL publishes this article in good faith but is not liable for any loss or damage caused by reliance on the information it contains.