3rd August 2011

The grade 9 learners were once again challenged to start their own business and run it successfully on their own for ten days.  The task was simple, using R100 as seed capital, the learners had to run a business for ten days and show a profit.  Failure to make a profit meant failing the project.

The girls had to repay the R100 loan according to their signed loan agreement, which  they had with their parents . They also had to pay a portion of the profit they made over to Miss Kerrigan, as their “tax”.  The tax money raised is donated to local charities.

In 2010, I introduced the concept of paying over the “tax money” to the Cancer Association in memory of my father, Mr Kevin Kerrigan, an entrepreneur who started a carpet cleaning business in Port Elizabeth in 1978 named STEAM CLEANING SERVICES.    His struggle with this deadly illness made me realise that I could honour his memory by teaching young learners the importance of small businesses in an economy as well as equip them with the necessary skills required to run a successful business.  By doing this I could also teach people about compassion and not to take the people we love for granted.

We managed to hand over R5 000.00 to the Cancer Association in 2010. This year the grade 9’s had  an added motivation to ensure that their businesses worked well in order to produce a decent profit.  One of our grade 9 learners lost her mother  earlier this year to cancer and we were determined to contribute the money to a cancer related charity once again.

I thought it would fitting for me to raise funds with our girls. I called upon the help of my mother, who now runs our business and managed to secure a donation towards this worthwhile grade 9 project.  In total the grade 9 learners raised a sum of R12 100.00. Bianca Moodaley deserves special mention for her ‘tax’ contribution of well over R1 600.00. Added to the R12 100.00 was the  kind donation from Steam Cleaning Services which allows us to hand over a sum of R15 100.00 to the IGAZI FOUNDATION as part of our ongoing involvement in community development in Port Elizabeth.

“The Eastern Cape is considered by South African haematologists to have the highest incidence of blood cancers in the country. We are still without our own ward for treating these diseases, and we have to send patients to other centres for treatment. These centres are no longer able to treat our patients. As a matter of urgency we must lobby for our own facility, help set it up, and then maintain it for our people. The Igazi Foundation will, with the people of the Eastern Cape, and the Eastern Cape Health Department, endeavour to do this.   Igazi is isiXhosa for "Blood".