Thank You, from Our First "One-Percenter"

Dear Raise the Children

My name is Khotatso Muhadi, and I am 23 years old. I grew up in Soshanguve, Pretoria, where I still spend the holidays with my mom, siblings, and grandparents. Growing up in a community affected by unemployment, poverty, and limited access to basic services was not easy, and I saw how many young people lost hope. These challenges shaped me and pushed me to work hard for a better future.

Receiving the Raise the Children (RTC) scholarship gave me access to good schooling and opened doors I never imagined would be possible. RTC didn’t just support my education they helped me grow, built my confidence, and connected me to opportunities like an internship at Kgosi Neighbourhood Foundation and the Thandulwazi professional development programme. Both played a big role in preparing me for work, and opened the door to apply for work at Kingsmead Girls College.

After matric, your support continued to guide me. Working as an assistant teacher at Kgosi Neighborhood Foundation was a blessing. Living on site helped me ease the financial pressure at home while learning how to stand on my own. I grew so much during this time learning responsibility, emotional maturity, and how to carry myself as a young professional.

Today, I am grateful and proud to have secured a permanent position at Kingsmead Girls College. For the first time in my life I will be able to support myself fully, help my family, and step confidently into adulthood. It is proof of how far I’ve come and how much Raise the Children’s support has shaped my journey.

Since matriculating in 2022, I’ve been a mentor to Thobekile, a Grade 10 RTC
Scholar at Penryn College. Walking with her, encouraging her, and watching her grow has reminded me how important it is to have someone who believes in you
on this journey.

From next year, I pledge to tithe 1% of my future income to help young people become Raise the Children Scholars and have the same opportunities that changed my life. I hope to continue being part of the RTC family and play a role in uplifting and empowering more young people across South Africa.

Thank you for believing in me and supporting me every step of the way. I am
truly grateful.

Warm regards,

Khotatso Muhadi
Class of 2022

Tilting at Windmills

Sometimes on our selection trips it feels like we are tilting at windmills. In a dusty, windblown stretch of the Eastern Cape a giant wind farm rises from the scrubland as you round the corner of a mountain pass. Five of our 114 Scholars will come from this region of

The Power of Hope

My name is Lucia Mlotshwa, and I'm in Grade 8. My father died when I was 5 months old and I was raised by a single mother. My mom works on a farm so that she can provide for me, my brother and my big sister and makes

Until the Cows Come Home

2025 has been marked by rising economic and geopolitical uncertainty. Despite advances in artificial intelligence, modelling, and algorithms, human behaviour remains fickle and the future hard to predict. Uncertainty breeds fear, which in turn leads to isolation, depression, aggression and paralysis. In the midst of the chaos, one thing remains

The Power of Education and Opportunity

One of the joys of being Raise the Children’s (RTC) board chair is having the opportunity to engage with our Scholars. Time and again, interacting with them leaves me feeling motivated and energized. I am always impressed and heartened by their commitment to learning and the characteristic resiliency that

Read more

Tilting at Windmills

The Power of Hope

Until the Cows Come Home

The Power of Education and Opportunity