Little Kindness Heroes make Mzansi a sweeter place

This Kindness Month, nine Kindness Principles have been introduced to 50 schools across Gauteng as part of a campaign to inspire our littlest citizens. Children are encouraged to be more generous, express compassion, offer empathy, display gratitude, show courage, be more considerate and lead with kindness in all they do. Since the campaign’s launch on 01 November 2021, learners have been encouraged to participate, and the top Heroes in each Kindness Category are rewarded.

Learners across the Gauteng province have eagerly embraced the Manhattan Sweets and Pick ‘n Pay Schools Club Kindness Awards. Two winners, Retshegofetse Sechogo, from ABC Primary School, and Phindulo Mabunga, from Laerskool Silverton Primary School – both in grade three – have been nominated by their teachers for their exceptional thoughtfulness towards others and their kind deeds.

Retshegofetse Sechogo received the Kindness Award for Gratitude. According to her Principal, Mrs Lara Karen Pretorius, Sechogo consistently goes out of her way to help others, is respectful to all and never misses the chance to say thank you. She shows gratitude and humility in all that she does and is selflessly helpful towards her peers.

True to form, Sechogo humbly accepted her award, as excited as she was. “I love to see other people happy, and that’s why I am a kind person,” she comments when asked about the award. “If you say ‘thank you’, it shows a part of you that is grateful and good. So it is important to be kind.”

Retshegofetse Sechogo accepts her award for Gratitude, one of the nine Kindness Principles.

Phindulo Mabunga received the Kindness Award for Courage because of her brave personality. The youngest of her siblings, she has a bold and charismatic personality. Her teacher, Mrs Pauline Coetzee, confirms: “Phindulo is a resilient and courageous learner, who is both kind and very helpful to her peers. She stands up for others and seeks out opportunities to help those in need.”

Phindulo Mabunga happily receives the Manhattan Kindness Award for Courage.

Coetzee says that the grade three learner is well-deserving of her award and that the campaign has been successful so far. “These awards are very encouraging and recognize the learners in a positive manner. The learners love the concept and the different acts of kindness,” she says.

Alison Tresling, Senior Confectionary Brand Manager at Premier FMCG, says, “This Kindness Month, and in honour of World Kindness Day on 13 November, we want to inspire a rainbow of positivity by encouraging young and old to do as many sweet deeds as possible. It’s not just about the reward. It’s about creating a culture of kindness so that we can build a sweeter Mzansi.”

The campaign, which includes an in-store element, continues until the end of December 2021, with the aim of inspiring children and adults to share sweet deeds and set an example of goodwill in our homes, workplace, schools and public when we interact with strangers. The nine Kindness Principles are: