Joe and Ann Kolshak formed Give A Child A Future USA, INC. in 2015 to support the educational needs of disadvantaged youth primarily in South Africa. The primary beneficiaries of our organization are disadvantaged youth enrolled in secondary schools across the Western Cape of South Africa. Give A Child A Future USA, Inc. is a US 501(c)3 non profit educational charity.
What Do We Do?
In South Africa even public education is not free. Students are required to pay for tuition, fees and supplies. While the poorest can attend without paying, they are often forced into substandard schools. In addition the poor are often are excluded from extracurricular activities and have little to no access to tutoring. The graduation rate at many of these schools is below 50 percent. Without even a high school education the cycle of poverty continues. To attend the best schools students must have financial support. We provide assistance in the form of tutoring, school supplies, and four “life skills camps”. Here, over a weekend students gather to get more instruction in life skills and mentoring in areas of potential tertiary study such as Accounting, Engineering, Viticulture, and Winemaking to name a few. Some local teachers, District employees and others volunteer their time to enrich the learning of our students.
Who receives our support?
Our beneficiaries are secondary school students in government schools spread across the Western Cape of South Africa predominately in the communities surrounding Cape Town. Learners are selected based upon three requirements – financial need, academic talent & motivation. This is a select group with many more applicants than openings available each year. Applicants must be recommended by their school principals, fill out an application, submit a written essay and pass an interview by school and NPC Staff. Our Students are led and mentored by an all-volunteer staff of local high school and college professors and guardians. A former beneficiary of a similar program, Florance Vermeulen is currently the President of the “Cape Scholars”, the organization we support in South Africa.