Over 600 people have recently graduated from a skills development program called Tools for Life delivered at the Castle Kyalami by the Scientology Volunteer Ministers. The skills development programme, delivered for free, aims to empower communities to achieve sustainable livelihoods.

Having been trained thoroughly on an array of life improvement skills such as conflict resolution, poverty alleviation, youth empowerment, tackling learning barriers, improvement of literacy, effective communication, business ethics, improving self-confidence, how to achieve goals, successful public relations, financial ethics, overcoming drug abuse, and many more, they were now ready to graduate with the needed tools to be successful in fighting against the current conditions that plague our country.

“This soft skills development initiative comes as a voluntary service to the community. We have graduated over 25,000 people so far in the last 5 years, and many of them went on to open successful farms and businesses, improve their employment opportunities, change the quality of education, and more. Their successes make the important point that these simple but powerful skills work,” said Sandile Hlayisi, Chairperson of the Scientology Volunteer Ministers.

The graduation ceremony began with a warm welcome celebrated by the over 600 attendees, who all expressed their sense of pride for completing this training and are now equipped with the skills to help others. This week’s graduates came from various areas and industries, including community leaders, volunteers, the Gauteng Department of Health, the Department of Social Development Limpopo, emergency services, the South African Police Service, early childhood practitioners, university professors, business leaders, social workers, and nurses from all over South Africa.

“We drove for hours to come and attend this joyous occasion. It was truly inspiring to see the graduates full of pride and ready to take on the world,” said a representative from Social Development in Limpopo.

Previous graduates who went on to achieve remarkable accomplishments include:

Reverend Phampha William Ramodike, Deputy Principal from Limpopo, used the skills learned in the programme to improve the quality of education in his school and succeeded in getting the highest passing grade in his district! .

Boitumelo Maswanganye is a Soshanguve resident who uses these skills to improve illiteracy in her community. Deeply concerned by the recent reports indicating that 82% of grade 4 learners cannot read for meaning, she rolled up her sleeves to tackle these barriers to learning head-on. Kids in her afterschool programme all describe how they are now able to learn better and have improved their results.

Irene Moemise used the same tools to change her life by opening her own business. Moemise, like many South Africans, lost her employment due to the COVID-19 impact. Despite being highly qualified for most jobs, even a Master’s degree in her field, she could not win against retrenchment and struggled to find employment, but it wasn’t until she dedicated herself to this community skills development programme that her fate changed. Moemise used the skills she learned through the programme to change her status from employee to employer by opening a growing bakery in the community of Meadowlands that has proven to be a hit with locals. Through her bakery, known as Le’Bakery, she turned her passion to survive and achieve sustainability as a new entrepreneur.

The well-attended ceremony ended on a high note, as the graduates were already making plans on how they would change their society after this training. Hlayisi concluded by saying, “Community development is crucial for achieving sustainable livelihoods and better living conditions for all. But it all starts with a change in mindset. Empowering people to take action is the first essential step towards achieving this goal. Let’s work together to create a community that is capable of driving positive change.”

The Scientology Volunteer Ministers have so far trained over 25,000 South Africans who have all completed the 19 Tools for Life courses written by renowned humanitarian L. Ron Hubbard, and they are continuing their path in creating more.