S o u t h A f r i c a
Population: 51.2 Million
Total GDP: 419.925 Billion
GDP per person: $11,600
Orphans: 1.9 Million
Latest News from RetailROI South Africa Projects & Trips
Summer 2024
Over a two-week trip in late July and early August, Dan Grady and Sue Mueller led a productive mission to Jeffreys Bay, South Africa, alongside Retail ROI members Beth Buzek, Gary McQuillan, and his daughter Jessica. The trip focused on educational support and community development initiatives.
Key Accomplishments
Ithemba Fun Day: Conducted two full-day ADDO bus trips for Ithemba staff and children from the Luo House, ensuring continuity in school activities with support from student teachers and local leaders.
Luo House Activities: Organized a shopping adventure and dinner for the children, encouraging them to try new foods such as ostrich, calamari, and sushi, enhancing their culinary experiences.
Motor Skills and Learning Project: Painted the back wall of Ithemba school black, with plans for GLA students to add shapes, colors, and numbers to assist children during recess.
After School Tutoring: Launched a tutoring program for 50 to 70 local primary school students, focusing on Math and Language. This initiative has seen 80 GLA students volunteer as tutors over the past 120 days.
New Student Sponsorship: The Grady family committed to sponsoring 10 students at JBay Academy for grades 1 to 7, addressing placement issues for Ithemba graduates. This initiative is projected to cost around USD $16,000 annually. If you or your company are interested in sponsoring a student contact Dan Grady at the email address below.
B-ED Certification Sponsorship: Sponsored three teachers for B-ED certification to enhance educational qualifications.
Grant Writing Initiatives: GLA is hiring a full-time grant writer to secure additional international funding, supported by mentorship from a US-based expert.
Facility Upgrades: Identified needs for improvements at the Luo House and Ithemba kitchen, with plans for renovations pending Board approval.
Business Program Engagement: Hosted Gary McQuillan to share his career journey with students, fostering networking opportunities. If you or your company are interested in participating in a Zoom presentation with the GLA Business Program contact Dan Grady at the email address below.
Internship Opportunities: Explored potential internships for GLA graduates with US companies to promote career development and break the cycle of poverty. If you or your company are interested in exploring internship opportunities contact Dan Grady at the email address below.
Technical School Planning: Committed to expanding GLA's curriculum to include technical education, with plans to enroll 30 new students in 2025.
Leadership Program Participation: Attended weekly leadership sessions focusing on character strengths, engaging over 20 students.
Church Services: Participated in local church services, fostering community connections.
Global Village Development: Supported the construction of over 50 homes for community members, with 24 homes completed so far.
Community Planning: Discussed plans for gated mini-villages to support informal community residents, with prototype housing designs in development. Grady Family has committed to build 10 container hoes at the cost of $5K each provided the land can be obtained.
BIT Tour Planning: Planned a 2025 trip for GLA students to visit US companies, promoting business exposure and fundraising efforts.
ROI Budget Review: Participated in the 2024/2025 budget review, introducing a new sponsor portal for tracking student sponsorship data.
Oakridge Primary School Expansion: Ongoing modifications to the parking lot to accommodate future expansion.
Host House Construction: Dan Grady is building a host house at Global Village, set to be completed in October, to facilitate future visits from ROI members.
Dan Grady and Sue Mueller plan to return to Jeffreys Bay twice a year, continuing their commitment to supporting local education and community development initiatives. Interested individuals can contact Dan Grady for future participation.
If you are interested in joining them on their next trip contact Dan Grady at ccoredan@gmail.com
A group of 9 of us just got back from the RetailROI Trip to Jeffrey's Bay, South Africa. This is the only area of the world where we have a continuity of opportunity from age 3 through to college and career. It also happens to be one of the most beautiful places in the world.
RetailROI's first project was helping to build a 10-room schoolhouse for a pre-school named Ithemba. It now houses 160 3-6yr old children for pre-school through kindergarten and then they have a tutoring program for 60 elementary school children in the afternoon.
I wish I counted how many times in the past month I wished we had an upcoming ROI group visit us in May or June of this year… So much has happened on either side of the Atlantic over the past months, that I am sure we would keep each other entertained for some time. The word that best describes the past season at GLA is “maturity”. I am sure in your own spheres you can testify to this. As a Non Profit, we have embraced this season of disruption and challenges, and I believe, that through the goodness of God and the hard work of many hands, we are able to give testimony of many great stories. Some of these stories I wish to share and highlight.
RetailROI has a strong relationship with a series of schools in South Africa ranging from age 3 to college age. In fact, through your contributions and support of SuperSaturday, we have more than 25 children progressing from the projects (townships) to a strong leadership high school experience and a few through college. In fact, in 2019 we had our first graduate from poor pre-school not only graduate from high school, but also college and starting as an accountant post college. see more
Jeffreys Bay, South Africa, has been in the news a lot over the last few days because of a recent shark attack there during a surfing competition. see more
My trip with ROI to South Africa is one of the most fantastic and memorable of my life. The travel arrangements by Greg and Chariss went smoothly, and the place at Jeffries Bay was gorgeous. see more
John journeyed to South Africa with the Retail Orphan Initiative. Together, with a team from Intel, the RetailROI group deployed a new tablet-based education system from Intel in an after-school program in an impoverished area of Jeffreys Bay, South Africa. John describes his experience: see more
Click on image to see more pics from various trips to South Africa.