THE first Alive and Kicking SA stitching centre opened in Wellington last week with thirty stitchers, all local people, who are making new soccer balls for schools.
The Managing Director of Alive and Kicking, Rukia Cornelius, said that they have set up stitching centres in rural and peri-urban areas where unemployment is high and use locally sourced African leather for the balls.
“We can produce soccer balls, netballs, volleyballs and hope to produce rugby balls by 2009,” Cornelius said.
Each ball is emblazoned with one or two health promotion and social awareness messages referring to HIV and Aids, TB, gender-based violence, rape and substance abuse.
In this way, Alive and Kicking meets its simple goal of using sport as the medium to address the numerous challenges facing our youth.
“Producing soccer balls is about creating new opportunities, creating jobs and spreading the message of HIV/Aids,” said Arthob Petersen, Drakenstein mayoral committee member at the official opening last week.
The 2010 Fifa World Cup Ambassador for South Africa, Desireé Ellis, said that its takes a lot of hard work to make a ball.
“But its all for a good cause, because you are giving a child the opportunity to play with a ball,” Ellis said.
Alive & Kicking is a registered not-for-profit organisation. It focuses on Africa and is built on the principle that every young person has the right to play and has the basic right to life choices, health and education.
Alive and Kicking believes that creating sustainable employment and developing skills affirms an individual’s ability to shape their destiny.
