A determined South African knew he wanted to be a teacher one day… his focus and hard work made that dream come true!
Thami, a determined young man from an impoverished background always knew that he wanted to be a teacher. To him it was his calling but life had not afforded him the opportunity. The young man knew he had to do everything in his power to make his dream come true.
The first step to that dream was moving from a rural area to somewhere where he could find work to help him fund his studies towards becoming a teacher.
Thami spent a long time trying to find a job and eventually started working as a petrol attendant in Durban.
Through a stroke of fate, Thami, a Christian, came into contact with the Institute for Learning and Motivation, a Durban-based Islamic organisation.
The Institute for Learning and Motivation – South Africa, better known as ‘ILM-SA,’ is a non-profit organisation which was founded in 2006.
It has two main objectives:
- Improving the quality of lives of people who are socio-economically disadvantaged, no matter their religion.
- Reviving core Islamic values like brotherhood, social responsibility as well as racial and other forms of equality in their community.
One evening, Fatima, an ILM-SA trustee, was filling petrol at the petrol station where Thami worked when a discussion about his future was sparked. Fatima encouraged the young man, who was serving her, to further his studies.
“I jotted down my number on a piece of paper and handed it to him.”
Thami immediately approached ILM-SA for a bursary who then distributed his request to their community. A husband-and-wife team agreed to fund Thami’s studies, and another community member funded his move from the informal settlement into a safer area.
“ILM-SA took me from nowhere to somewhere, giving me the ladder to climb closer to my dream. In times of despair and sorrowful moments, this organisation game me hope.”
In just a few short years Thami graduated with numerous distinctions and found his place at Grace College. a private school in Pietermaritzburg.
He currently teaches LO and isiZulu and is also pursuing his Honours degree.
It may have been a “stroke of fate” that brought Fatima and Thami together but it was his sheer determination that helped his dream come true!
For more info or to assist the ILM-SA institute, click here.