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​The members of the Johannesburg Student Council executive committee received their official blazers at a ceremony at Beaulieu College.


The day began with a very slow start and an extremely long drive. I honestly did not think the school was that far away; in fact, I thought the distance would have been as far as from Sandton to the Joburg Theatre Complex.

But to my disappointment, it was much, much further - we drove for almost an hour before reaching our destination.

A privately owned piece of paradise is what I thought of that place. I believe the area is called Kyalami. The houses looked like those one normally saw in property magazines. "Houses that are fit for kings and queens," is how my mother described them; the area was quiet and peaceful.

I thought I knew what it meant to be speechless, but as we entered the gates of Beaulieu College, I knew my definition of the phrase was far from right.

The school was truly magnificent; it honestly made a person feel intimidated. It epitomised perfection in every meaning of the word. The learners and staff welcomed us to their beautiful domain. And then the ceremony began.

We had a 30-minute slot during assembly on the last day of the second term, on 31 July. Yusuf Lachporia, the manager of the Johannesburg Student and Children's councils, in the Office of the Speaker, introduced himself and spoke about the Student Council and what it did for the community.

He then went on to the most important part of the ceremony - officially inducting the council's executive committee. We were given our blazers, with the help of Nonhlanhla Radebe, the senior administrator in the Speaker's Office, and Brenda Andrews, the manager of civic education, also in the Speaker's Office. What a great experience it was.

Then Lachporia formally introduced the newly elected Student Council exco - and my pounding heart returned to normal. I was nervous no more.

The day at Beaulieu College is one that I'm sure not only me but the whole of the exco will never forget, not simply because of the beautiful school grounds, but also because in those few minutes, we went from being just another young kid to being the kid who can make some difference to her youth and to her community. And who knows, maybe one day even to the world.

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