On a Sunday in 2018, tragedy struck when a fire broke out at Athlone North Primary School, leaving its library completely gutted.
As a result of arson, four classrooms were destroyed, resulting in millions of rands in damages. Adding to the devastation, computers which had just been set up in the lab the Friday prior to the incident were also destroyed.
While the Western Cape Education Department did pay for the repair of the building, the library stock was lost.
School principal Tristan Brikkels says it has been a long process to re-establish this important resource. Since the day of the fire, the principal at the time, Beverly Daniels, has worked tirelessly to rebuild the losses by approaching local schools and organisations for donations.
Brikkels says many schools in the southern suburbs donated second-hand books to the school . With the added assistance of Oxford Press and Avbob, the school now has a fully equipped library. It was launched on Thursday 21 April.
While retired, the library has continued to be an important part of Daniels’s life. With brightly painted murals and books catering to all grades, the library still has a way to go, says Daniels, adding that they will continue to collect resources and materials to assist with the re-establishing of the library.
On Friday 22 April, in celebration of World Book Day (observed on Saturday 23 April) and Earth Day, the learners also celebrated the occasion with a book-related programme.
Brikkels says, as a no-fee school, the contributions have been invaluable in promoting reading as an important part of education.
