CHANGING LIVES
The Motheo Academy is actively changing the lives of young people. Gary Pretorius (27) from the Westbury Academy in the West of Johannesburg shared his story with us.
When word started to spread in the Westbury community that Motheo was looking for unemployed youth to take part in a 12-month learnership, 27-year-old Gary Pretorius thought he would put in an application to see if he met the criteria. “I wasn’t very sure what to expect,” Gary admits. “I put in the application but I wasn’t very hopeful that I would get in.” When it was time for interviews, Gary gave it his all, knowing that this was an opportunity to possibly turn his life around. He was eventually one of the 20 that were chosen to be part of the learnership. “I think I made it into this learnership by the grace of God. I was looking for a way to improve my life and get better working experience when this learnership came about. There aren’t many positive opportunities here so I was very excited to have had this one come my way.” Like all new things, getting used to the realities of committing to the learnership came with its challenges for Gary. “I don’t think most of us understood how much we could need to commit to the process so it was very difficult at the beginning. There were some fights and other issues like time keeping that made me realise that if we didn’t work on those areas, then this opportunity would go to waste.” In the last 11 months, Gary has gone through the three stages of the learnership, which are made up of theory, practical work and simulations and is now working on an actual building site. “My favourite part has been the practical part of the course. I have realised that I have a passion for building and it is something I would like to continue with. I see this learnership as a blessing and a steppingstone. From here, I want to learn more about the construction industry and make it my career,” he adds. With his learnership almost done, Gary says there have been other lessons he has learnt outside of construction. “I have been taught how to work with others, how to respect my elders in a work environment and how to have patience. These are skills that I would like to teach other young people in my community because there is a need for them. I didn’t even know I needed those skills until they were taught to me,” he admits. As Motheo, we are proud that our efforts are helping young people who need a helping hand to create the future of their dreams.
