PE WaterWise Instructor Marcus Oshry visited Rufane Donkin to teach them about water safety. This is his report:Through my Rotary connections, I met a teacher from Rufane Donkin which is in a rebuilding phase after the school was vandalised and set alight by angry ex teachers. The school currently looks like a building site but there are still classes going on in between the jack hammers that are roaring around the site.I am not sure how the learners can concentrate as even I struggled to do my talk with all the noise.Anyway I was here and I was here to deliver a message to try and stop the drownings that are happening along our coastlines. Over 3 days I managed to visit the whole school.Each class from Grade R to Grade 7 had experienced a family member drowning or knew of someone who had drowned. This is very alarming to me. Children should not be subjected to these kinds of things. They are kids. They are meant to be happy go lucky care free spirits. But then in saying that, the teacher I was working with says that often they have gun fights up and down the streets next to the school during the day because of the rival drug gangs in the area and death is normal for these children.After spending a break in the yeard with some of these kids I started to realise the types of children I was working with as the language that streamed from their mouths in coversation and their body language towards each other spoke a thousand words to me and left me speechless on many an occasion.I am hoping that the message of RIP Currents and CPR that I delivered to these learners has sunk in and that it will stand them not only in good stead at sea but it might even save their lives along the streets of their school.WaterWise is proudly sponsored by TNPA.
Marcus Oshry
