After being bullied for a lot of his young life, Christo started karate. He would find he was pretty good at it; good enough to compete in the World Champs in fact!
But the trip would be a costly beast. Stepping in with kindness, this is how a community and a coffee shop put up their hands to see the 11-year-old karate kid’s dream through:
Fourways, South Africa (30 May, 2023)—Being selected to compete in any world championship showdown is no small pat on the back. Especially when you’re 11 years old. Especially when it’s a discipline like karate. However, local karate kid Christo Prokas made headlines for exactly that—set to showcase his skills at the WUFK World Championships in Scotland.
But being selected and being able to go are two different sides of the coin. International competitions are a costly beast that many parents can’t afford no matter how much they want their kids to have those once-in-a-lifetime opportunities.
This is where community heroes dust off their capes and respond to the call, not of duty, but kindness.
Dynamite Comes in Small Packages, and So Does Kindness
Christo had been bullied for a lot of his young life, since the age of four. His mother explains that this is the reason his parents introduced him to karate. Little did they know then just how far that decision to build his confidence would take him.
For many months after the world championships news broke, his family rallied to fundraise for the competition of a lifetime.
Dinners, crowd-funding accounts, donations from friends, families and strangers and eventually, Christo’s dream was just a coin’s throw away (to the tune of some thousand coins).
But the world champs are in July, and time doesn’t slow down. Determined to help in the nick of time, a Fourways-based coffee shop, DC Coffee Co stepped in to spread the word, sell some choccies and rally the community!
It isn’t surprising to see the coffee shop behind the mission either—their entire ethos is based on brewing kindness, which they’ve done in the ways that’ll make you say ‘I’m glad people like are around.’
In 10 days, their efforts inspired sponsors and community members to help that last stretch of funding for Christo, going above and beyond the call of the community with an R24 000 cheque — R15 000 had been the initial goal for the outstanding costs.
“To say we are thankful, humbled and in awe is a complete understatement.”—DC Coffee Co.
We’re so inspired by the support for this karate kid who has already made us proud before setting foot on any global stage.
As for the coffee shop, it turns to its next mission—finding a kidney donor for Bianca Riley (who they’ve dedicated their entire website to). Upon Christo’s return from Scotland, the focus will be on an anti-bullying campaign!
We are cutting many, many onions.
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