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Tsenulo Moyo
BULAWAYO-BASED drummer and Drums of Peace founder Lewis Ndlovu (49), popularly known as “Santa Comes to Makokoba,” is one of the unsung heroes of his community.
Ndlovu got into the arts in 1986, where he received training and life skills in the arts industry.
“Santa Comes to Makokoba” is a project that was initiated on 20 December 2017 and is spearheaded by Drums of Peace.
The project is targeted at supporting the vulnerable children in Makokoba suburb.
Through the “Santa Comes to Makokoba” project, Ndlovu has dedicated his unwavering love for the vulnerable children in his community by buying groceries, toys, giving some children school fees vouchers, uniforms, clothes, conducting workshops to teach the girl child, providing emotional support to children suffering from bullying, and planting trees with the assistance of the Lions Club.
This year, they plan to focus on drug awareness, organising workshops and educational programmes to inform young people about the dangers of substance abuse.
Ndlovu, as the project director, said the inspiration to start the project was aroused when he visited the United Kingdom in 2017 and saw a charity programme happening there.
“I thought to myself, why not create something similar with the intention of ploughing back and giving back to the community, especially the children that always come to the youth centre where I work from? My background also contributed to starting this noble programme, as I grew up in a poor family and I know how it feels to sleep hungry,” Ndlovu said.
Ndlovu said the first time they started the project, he spoke to his friends about the idea, and one person who helped with the funds was the late politician and philanthropist and national heroe Tshinga Dube, who gave him pencils and books.
The project then grew to include 100 loaves of bread, which were put together as a Christmas box that Santa gave to the children.
He said more than 400 children have benefited from this programme, adding that the major challenge they have is getting sponsorship for the programme.
Ndlovu said the project was sustained by donations and volunteers who come to assist.
“We do not have a specific sponsor. We get sponsors from different organisations, corporate businesses, and our friends, locally and internationally. My family also supports the programme by cooking and running around to assist wherever possible,” he said.
He said they measure the success of the project by the number of children they support and also by how much donations they receive. For two consecutive years, they have managed to get sponsorship for the children to go and buy school uniforms from head to toe.
“The success of this project is getting bigger sponsorships and putting more smiles on the children’s faces,” he said.
Ndlovu said the mission of the project is to endeavour to prepare, nurture, and produce a wholesome crop (Isigogo sigoqwa sisemanzi), which is a child in society, and to foster and continue with the noble programme that fosters and supports children.
He said the benefits of the project are more than tangible benefits, as the children also get intangible life skills such as drum making and playing the drums.
Ndlovu said in the past year, they put the children in sections when helping them, but this year they plan to develop and make it easier for people who want to pick these children using their areas of strength, such as having categories for the academically gifted, sports-gifted, and technically gifted.
“We are looking for support that will sustain us to introduce weekly programmes where children will come together, play, and learn these life skills on a consistent, structured programme with the accompaniment of enough refreshments, resources, and teachers who have the expertise to share the knowledge,” he said.
Ndlovu said to the Zimbabwean community at large that they should know, as citizens, that they have a responsibility to work with the government to fight and reduce hunger and poverty in the country.
“With the expansion of this project, that can be achieved. To my fellow Zimbabweans, it is not easy to make a difference, as it takes commitment, dedication, determination, persistence, and resilience. But if you are a Zimbabwean with a big heart, let us go out and assist those in need,” he said.
He added, “I do these works from my heart, and that keeps driving me forward. My vision is to build a registered arts school that will identify, nurture, teach, and support vulnerable children, awarding them with certificates that will help them support themselves, because as an artist, if you do not have any academic documents, you might fail to get a job even though you have the experience.”
Online Reporter