This past Friday evening, Union Preparatory School, Graaff-Reinet celebrated the incredible success of its 2025 Wild Karoo fundraising initiative at a special gala event, hosted at the Graaff-Reinet Club.
The event, which has become a hallmark of community spirit and support since its inception in 2014, 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹𝘀, thanks to the unwavering dedication of parents, staff and supporters.
Chairman of the School Governing Body, Justin Kingwill, delivered an inspiring welcoming address in which he highlighted the immense power of collaboration, quoting international author Idowu Koyenikan: “𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘢 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘱 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘢𝘭𝘴.”
This sentiment perfectly encapsulated the evening’s atmosphere, as guests united to support a common purpose.
In his address, Kingwill reflected on the challenges facing education in South Africa. Despite these hurdles, he expressed optimism for the future of the Union Schools. “𝘖𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘦𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘦, 𝘥𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵, 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦,” he stated confidently.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗴𝗮𝗹𝗮 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗳 – 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆.
Kingwill expressed heartfelt gratitude to the Wild Karoo committee, particularly to Diane Murray, Melanie de Klerk, Lauren Wormald, Jessica Walker and Liesl Kingwill, for their tireless efforts in organising the event. “𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯,” he said.
The support from the broader community was palpable, with so many generous donations for the auction. “It was truly heart-warming going through the auction lots and seeing what parents, friends of the school and members of the community had donated,” Kingwill shared, emphasizing the strong ties that bind the community together.
A 𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗞𝗦 was also extended to the Graaff-Reinet Club, Wessel Landman, Mark van der Struys and the rest of the club’s executive team for accommodating the venue change at the last minute, as well as to Greg Meir from Swift Vee for his user-friendly auction platform.
Kingwill acknowledged that the success of the Wild Karoo event is a collective achievement, stating, “𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴.” (A slideshow recognising all those who have helped with this fantastic occasion was featured on the night.)
As the night unfolded, attendees enjoyed an exciting atmosphere filled with camaraderie and purpose. Kingwill closed his address with the powerful words of renowned author Jane Goodall: “𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗮 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲!”
The Wild Karoo fundraising event has once again proven to be more than just a fundraiser – it’s a celebration of community spirit, resilience and a shared commitment to ensuring that Union Preparatory School continues to thrive.
