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Bruce Chikuni Sports Reporter
WHEN Yadah Stars players were busy celebrating maintaining their PSL status, Junior Zindoga left the pitch to enjoy the same feat with Jairos Jiri children whom he had invited to watch their crunch fixture at the National Sports Stadium on Sunday.
The Miracle Boys beat Dynamos 2-1 to escape a relegation scare in their final fixture of the Castle Lager Premiership.
The 25-year-old invited some Jairos Jiri children through his Junior Zindoga Foundation.
Zindoga made a request to the Yadah leadership and asked them to convince the PSL to donate tickets to these children.
The PSL answered Zindoga’s prayer.
But there was no transport to take the children to the National Sports Stadium and he hired a kombi for the trip.
The kids enjoyed what appeared to be a time of their lives as they were seen cheering the tricky forward each time he tormented the Dynamos defence.
They even extended their gratitude with a standing ovation after Zindoga was replaced in the late stages of the game.
Zindoga said he had been assisting Jairos Jiri children since 2015.
“I realised the importance of promoting a change of perception towards kids born with medical conditions eight years ago. It was after I was deployed there for three weeks for a Lenten Campaign and I have been trying to reach out since then.
“We are in a low resource environment and I would like to be the bridge for the disabled community. The Jairos Jiri association does so much for these children and the teachers, physios, nurses and staff are some of the most selfless people.
“Their lives will be made easier if I can source medical supplies for the kids, better equipment like wheelchairs and books, but the ultimate goal is to be able to create a fund where these kids can proceed to tertiary education,” said Zindoga.
Zindoga said he expects to widen his horizon once he secures partnership from the corporate world.
He also wants to use his status as a professional footballer to inspire the underprivileged to compete at the Paralympics.
“I feel that these children can live a better life with outside funding and government support.
“I’m motivated by my faith in solidarity with brothers and sisters in our communities to preserve the sacredness of human life.
“I’m looking to improve the lives of the marginalised population by addressing their basic needs such as food, shelter, education and healthcare,” he said.
Zindoga told Zimpapers Sports that he was also inspired by Chelsea who started Thalitha Children Trust in South Africa.
He also draws some inspiration from Warriors midfielder, Marshall Munetsi, who is also impacting the lives of the less privileged.
“I believe that you don’t have to be the wealthiest to be able to impact change. I used to think that I would start doing what I’m doing once I start playing in Europe because that is how I used to judge success.
“I still want to play in Europe, but at the same time I feel like I’m in a good position to improve someone’s life with the little I have at the moment.
“My sister is the reason I had the courage to start this project and my dream is to transform as many lives as possible through the support of the corporate world and anyone who is better positioned.
“I have not yet reached a point in my career where I can drastically affect their lives, but they also love to interact with different people so whenever I am free, I use that time to play with them or observe them learning. I realised that is also enough for them.”
Zindoga said he is currently focusing on providing solar power for the borehole which they installed for the kids to have constant water supply.
Online Reporter