Stories of young people involved in Dance4Life.

 

 

 

 

 

Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Kiki Focke and I am 20 years old.  I live in Arnhem and I am currently in my second year of studies at college. 
I am particularly interested in travelling the world - discovering all of its hidden beauty, meeting new people and learning about new cultures – amazing!  That’s where I get my energy and inspiration from.   

Two years ago, still at school, I was asked by a teacher if I would be interested in being a part of the Dance4Life Organization Team at our school.  On hearing what Dance4Life did and what they stood for, I was immediately enthusiastic.  Since then, I actively helped with warming the school up for Dance4Life – an easy task! Dance4Life came to the school with an inspiring and educational show, giving us the knowledge and tools that we needed to take action ourselves. Because of this, we were able to raise substantial amounts of money for AIDS projects of STOP AIDS NOW! and we learnt how to inform the people around us about the serious issues of HIV and AIDS. 

Since October 2007, Dance4Life has begun to play a much larger role in my life.  My school was approached by Dance4Life with the question whether there were students who would be interested in taking part in the television programme “TeenSwap XL” (Puberruil XL).  In this programme, you swap lives for a week with someone from another country.  The theme of the swap was to be AIDS, so you had to have, either directly or indirectly, a connection with AIDS issues.  Because of my efforts for Dance4Life, I was eligible to be considered. 

Following a selection procedure that lasted a few weeks, I was chosen from a few hundred applicants to set off to an (as yet) unknown country.  This was soon revealed to be CapeTown, South Africa.  What I saw and experienced there has changed my outlook on life forever.  I visited the townships, where I was able to talk with infected people with only a few weeks left to live.  I spent a day with girls of my age who had been raped and were forced to live the rest of their lives with this terrible disease.  I also visited an orphanage where abandoned, infected children ran towards me, open armed, crying “Mummy, Mummy”.  I witnessed with my own eyes why our help is so important.  All of this affected me deeply, and I will remain a supporter of Dance4Life for as long as I can.  Can I say the same for you ?

 
I live with grandparents and cousins. My mother lives in Clermont and my father passed away in 2004, shot at home during a robbery. I was very sad when my father passed away because he was the only one providing for all of us. My mother is not working; my grandfather is now taking care of me.
Since the beginning of this year when Dance4Life came to my school I have come to learn that “I AM ME”. When people say bad things I no longer compare myself with others because I now believe that “I AM SLINDILE” and there is no other one like me. 
Early this year, I sat at home reading my Dance4Life Diary which contains useful information. This inspired me to join the local youth centre called “Siyanqoba” which means “We will conquer”. Being more active has taught me that ‘the life going forward is much quicker than the life going backwards’.
Being part of the Dance4Life program in my school has helped me deal with major challenges and problems in life. My aunt was HIV positive and eventually passed away of AIDS and my mother was taking care of her for a long time. Now my mother is HIV positive and this is something I don’t like talking about because I always get emotional. My mother talks to me about her status and how I must make sure I don’t get infected. I know that I have a short time with my mother. I wish she can also be part of the things and workshops that I am learning because they teach me about how to take life seriously and still have fun along the way.  I really love the “VALUES Workshop” because it reassures me that wherever I go I should remain true, that “I AM A SOUTH AFRICAN “therefore I should never forget who I am, what I stand for and where I come from. My values keep me grounded, but most importantly they keep me away from HIV/AIDS.  

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