Pelekelo had to wait to begin school until she was 8 years old. She lived an hour and a half walk from the nearest village and even had to cross a river with crocodiles in a dugout canoe to reach the school! She thought that after she passed her 7th grade examination, that would be the end of her education because her mother had no funds to put her in 8th grade. Besides, there were no schools within walking distance that went beyond 7th grade.
“My teacher knew how much I wanted to continue learning and asked if I would want to go to Kaoma Secondary School on a WISE scholarship. I said, “YES!”, so I applied and was accepted and started Grade 8 in 2014. I passed my 9th Grade examination in 2015 and when I heard that this organization will continue supporting me, I was at cloudy 9!”
This young woman who came from the remotest village school WISE Zambia reaches, graduated 4th in her class in 2018, with an A+ average. “Now I want to do my degree in nursing with the aim of ‘paying it forward’ and helping my family.” During her gap year, Pelekelo has served as an intern in the Kaoma WISE Trust Women’s Centre — tutoring, serving as a receptionist, and supporting Maggie in every way imaginable. “Giving back” is a way of life with WISE Zambia!
