All’s Well That Ends Well

December already?
It feels like December 2024 just crept up on us and with all the merriment the month feels like it flew by. Though the year wasn’t smooth sailing all the time, we are grateful for the many highs and the opportunity to give our outgoing Upper Sixes a good send off.

You did it!
The Big Give campaign is a huge and slightly nerve-wrecking part of our December. Our target this year was a whopping £10 000 and we weren’t sure if we were going to meet it. We are so humbled by your generosity. As always, you gave big and surpassed our expectations! Thanks to your incredible support, we smashed our target and raised £10825! This amount will go a long way in changing the lives of young Zimbabweans through education.

A packed December with some sad goodbyes
The December celebrations kicked off with the Graduation Ceremony where we honoured the achievements of our Class of 2024. In their own words, they shared some of their heart-warming and incredible journeys. Mrs A, Mr Mahz and Mrs Tambowoneyi had special words of encouragement prepared for each student. Watch the highlights of our Graduation Ceremony here.

Next was our annual camp. A wonderful time that unites all A-Level students and staff. It was a packed weekend with lots of activity. We were really pleased to have The Maker Club lead a Robotics session where our students created some fantastic robots. Our Christmas party made an exciting part of the camp. The weather allowed for the much loved Zimbabwean braai (barbecue) which was thoroughly enjoyed by all. There were lots of games and laughter and though we knew that with every moment, we were nearing the time to say goodbye to the Class of 2024, that did not tarnish the mood. Watch the highlights of the Christmas party here.

The weekend ended with a lesson in giving back as we travelled to the outskirts of Harare to paint and restore blackboards at a rural primary school. 27 Residential and Non-Residential students were in attendance as well as 6 members of staff. It was a scorcher of a day, with temperatures reaching highs of 34 degrees Celsius. Though there were many resources needed for this, the real lesson for our students was to give of their time and energy. It was a tiring but well spent day. 500 pupils will have newly painted blackboards when they return to school in January!

As a final act of giving back to the community, our Residential A-Level students had been crocheting woolen squares through 2024. They all learnt to crochet in the boarding house. They spent their last few days at the boarding house putting the squares together to make a baby blanket. The blanket will be donated to a teenage mother at a local Harare hospital. Their time and efforts will be an amazing gift to both the mum and baby.

We want to take this time to wish all the Class of 2024 much love and success as they go off to university. We have loved sharing the last two years with them.

Someone say ‘happy birthday!’
The last of 2024’s birthdays were celebrated with much joy thanks to a local Zimbabwean donor whose team makes cakes for both our university and A-Level students. What a difference this has made to our students this year!

Hopes for 2025
As we reminisce on 2024 and look forward to 2025, we are excited to hear from a few of our Makomborero family regarding their hopes for 2025. First up is Sithabile, an A-Level Residential student who is currently in Upper Sixth at Georges. She says:

‘The Makomborero family is one the most cherished gifts to me. I enjoy spending time with them. 2024 was mostly filled with happiness and experiences from different aspects of my life. I really loved the family time at the Boarding House, it gave me a time to bond with the others. I am awaiting eagerly to become the very first girls captain at St George’s College and that’s my hope for 2025. Also, I have been planning to start a crocheting club at school so as to make warm clothing for underprivileged people.’

Next up is Tawana. A current Non-Residential Makomborero student who is in Upper Six at Mufakose 2 High School in 2025. Here are his thoughts on 2024 and his hopes for 2025:
‘2024 was a year of growth and learning for me. As a beneficiary of the Makomborero scholarship, I’ve cherished the unforgettable memories, support, and sense of family. Although my academic results didn’t meet my expectations, I’ve used this as an opportunity to correct my mistakes and strive for improvement. As I look forward to 2025, my goals include completing all my syllabuses on time to achieve maximum results. Beyond academics, I’m excited to explore extracurricular activities, particularly joining my school’s Under 20 tennis team. On a personal level, I aim to focus on self-growth, enabling me to have a positive impact on my community.’

Finally, let’s hear from Mr and Mrs A about their thoughts on 2024 and their hopes for 2025

‘In 2024, we had many highs. If we had to mention just a few, we would say that continuing to see Makomborero change lives was huge for us. We cherish the stories that keep us doing what we are doing! We also celebrated having two new partner schools, Watershed College and St Johns College! Getting donated a 3D printer to use for our Mobile Science Lab features up there with our best highs! We could fill a book with all the positives from 2024 and we are grateful to everyone who played a part.

We also faced some hard things this year. Seeing how the drought and economic climate continue to affect the livelihoods of so many is tough. Our fundraising environment has been a rocky one and it is one of our hopes that we will see a change in 2025.

All that being said, we are excited for another year to do better at what we already do and to see students discover who they are and fly!’

And finally,
Thank you to all our supporters, sponsors and donors. We wish you a happy year and we are looking forward to journeying with you in 2025!

If you would like to donate to any of our projects click here.