Mbekweni Community Sport Centre - MCSC

Celebrating Mandela Day in the spirit of Ubuntu!

Last Friday, 60 of our YeBoneers, together with their mentors and our coaches, dedicated their time to a community clean-up campaign, honouring Nelson Mandela's legacy of service and making a positive difference.

We were also privileged to welcome one of our respected community elders, who shared powerful words about the true meaning of Mandela Day. He spoke about the importance of respect, making positive life choices, staying out of trouble and understanding the sacrifices Nelson Mandela made for the freedom and opportunities we enjoy today. He urged our youth to become responsible leaders and active contributors to positive change in their communities.

A total of 136 children participated in the program with us, rotating through exciting sport & recreational activities and the community clean-up station. It was a day filled with learning, teamwork, fun, and giving back.

A big, heartfelt THANK YOU to our amazing partners:
💚 Drakenstein Municipality Solid Waste Department, facilitated by Councillor Sindile Gravel - for donating refuse bags, gloves, and face masks to support our clean-up campaign.
💚 Mbekweni Library - for preparing a delicious pot of soup for all participants and community members in need. And for giving us the opportunity for our children to participate in the library's reading program!

Every act of kindness, no matter how small, contributes to building stronger and more caring communities. "Be the change you want to see!"

Honouring the Youth of 1976 Through Unity, Sport and
Purpose

Last Friday, our Mbekweni Community Sport Centre came alive as YeBoneers gathered to commemorate Youth Month. While we did not march through the streets like the courageous young people of 1976, we honoured their
legacy in our own way
by coming together, building friendships, celebrating unity and embracing the freedom they fought for 50 years ago.

The day was filled with excitement, laughter and healthy
competition as YeBoneers from different program streams played side by side.

What stood out most wasn't who won or lost, but how young people supported one
another, encouraged each other and showed that unity is stronger than competition. One YeBoneer reflected, "I loved that we worked with people from different streams. We don't always get the chance to do that, and it reminded me that we're all part of one family."

The conversations after the games were just as meaningful as the games themselves. There was a shared feeling that the tournament created a safe space where everyone belonged. Another YeBoneer shared, "The energy was amazing! We competed, but we also supported each other. That's what made the day memorable."

Fifty years after the youth of 1976 stood for freedom and dignity, we continue to honour their courage by creating spaces where young people can lead, belong and grow. Their struggle gave us the freedom to gather, to play, to dream and to build the future together, and that is a victory worth celebrating!

🎉⚽ 16 Years of Changing Lives Through Sport! ⚽🎉

This year, Mbekweni Community Sport Centre celebrated a special milestone—16 years since our launch on 12 June 2010, just one day after the FIFA World Cup kicked off in South Africa. And sixteen years later, we brought the World Cup spirit back to MCSC!💫

Our birthday celebrations took place from 12–15 June and featured an exciting Mini World Cup with eight teams representing different countries. 🌍⚽

Through our "SCORE Cup of Heroes" format, boys and girls played together, promoting teamwork, inclusion, and respect. And the competition went beyond football... Teams earned points both on and off the field through cultural presentations, country-themed dress and displays, environmental posters, creativity, sportsmanship and team spirit. In celebration of Environmental Month and our theme, "Taking Pride in Our Centre," participants also showcased how they can help protect and care for the environment.

Prizes were awarded across various categories, and the overall champions were crowned based on the highest combined score for both their on-field performance and off-field participation.🏆

What made the event truly special was seeing our young people learn, compete, celebrate different cultures and create lasting memories together.

THANK YOU to everyone who has been part of our journey over the past 16 years! THANK YOU to Hope Through Action for building us this wonderful centre! And here's to many more years of impact, growth, and community pride! 💛💚
Happy Birthday, MCSC!!🥳🎂🎊

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1LmoKq37BJ/

Thank you, Kwezi for visiting us - great to see you again! And thank you to our partner
YoluntuCentre for your recognition of the work we do!

Nelson Mandela famously said that sport has the power to change the world.

Sport has the power to “speak to the youth in a language they understand”.

This “language” of sport is spoken fluently at the Mbekweni Community Sport Centre. A centre in Paarl where:
⚽️ The youth of Mbekweni are actively engaged in a variety of sports;
🥅 90 interns are employed annually;
🏉 The aim is to create a space where “everyone has a seat”.

Pictured here is Kwezi Lomso Shumi, first manager of the centre at its opening in 2010, and currently community engagement officer at Be Part.

But sport does far more than just train the physical body. For the youth of Mbekweni, sport provides a safe refuge from the socio-economic challenges they face.
It teaches them valuable life skills. Like leadership, decision-making, self-discipline.

But the most valuable lesson sport teaches, is teamwork.
Teamwork is a skill critical to successfully navigating every key relationship throughout life. Whether it be relationships in the marketplace (college, work), or relationships at home (parents, siblings, partners, children or friends).

The mark of having graduated from youth to adulthood is a journey from dependence to independence. But the most successful and fulfilled adults are those who excel at being inter-dependent.
Ubuntu. Otherwise known as teamwork. Recognising that we need each other.

Compared with a mere collection of individuals, a cohesive team will always deliver the superior product.

At Be Part we are a team of 45 professionals. Working together and proudly embracing our dependence on one another. Including our dependence on our participant community.

🌟MCSC Male Netballers help secure Silver at Provincial Tournament!🌟

From 24-26 April, five of our players represented Cape Winelands at the Western Cape Provincial Netball Tournament in Mossel Bay.

We're incredibly proud of these players:
🏐Luniko Vika
🏐Lloyd Jacobs
🏐Emihle Makamba
🏐Lathitha Dlwathi
🏐Lihle Krenya.
And we're incredibly proud of Mzimkhulu "Mzi" Godlo, our legendary MCSC coach, who was selected as Head Coach of the Winelands Senior Males team and guided them through some tough matches all the way to the Finals! Unfortunately, there they were beaten by Eden - Well done, Eden! But this team and our players can hold their heads high - the silver medal is a great achievement!!🥈🥳

A BIG CONGRATULATIONS to Molato Phokeng, who has been part of the MCSC family for years and who was awarded Best Defender of the tournament!
And a well-deserved CONGRATULATIONS to Mzi, awarded the Best Coach of the Tournament!👏🏼👏🏼🥳

Well done to you all! We are so proud of what male Netball continues to achieve at MCSC! 💫🏐

🌟MCSC Senior Female Players Shine at Western Cape Provincial Tournament!🌟

We are incredibly proud of our MCSC Senior Female players who represented us in Cape Winelands Teams at the Provincial Netball Tournament in Mossel Bay from 24–26 April! 🏐🏆👏

Chenique Sampson & Desne Jogman proudly played for the Winelands Senior A Team - showing determination, skill & true sportsmanship on the court. 💪🔥And that team showed great resilience & teamwork and brought home the bronze medal!🥉👏
A BIG CONGRATULATIONS to Chenique Sampson, who was named Best Shooter of the Tournament in her division — an incredible achievement!!🎯🏅🎊

A special shoutout also goes to Mbali Sibango, who represented the U19 A Winelands Team and helped secure a GOLD medal in the U19 division!! 🌟🥇

Well done! You continue to inspire us all and make MCSC proud. The future of women’s sport is bright because of you! 💙✨

Little Explorers at Mbekweni Community Sport Centre! 🎉

Our ECD YeBoneers took the little ones from Makhulu Happy Toddlers on a special community tour visiting some of the places that make up their everyday world:

📍 SAPS (Police Station) 🚓
📍 Local Church ⛪
📍 Shoprite 🛒
📍 Boxer 🛍️
📍 Langabuya Primary School 🏫
📍 Library 📚
📍 Clinic 🏥

The children had an amazing time exploring and learning about these important spaces in their community! They got to see first-hand the different resources and stakeholders who support and care for them every day.

It wasn’t just a walk- it was an adventure filled with smiles, curiosity, and excitement! 😊🌈

A big thank you to the ECD for trusting us with your learners and joining us on this journey. To all the stakeholders who welcomed the children with such warmth, we appreciate you! And special thanks to our YeBoneers for coming up with such a meaningful and impactful idea.

Thank you to everyone who made this outing so memorable for our young learners! 💛

MCSC U/16 Netball Girls "Maak Shaba"!🔥🏐 | Flashback to March 24th...

What a massive performance by our MCSC U/16 ladies in their friendly match against La Rochelle High School! These girls truly showcased beautiful netball and real fighting spirit. 💪🏾✨

It was a really valuable training match against our wonderful opponents, and as always, we appreciate the sportsmanship and competitive energy shared on court. Thank you to La Rochelle High School for these experiences, opportunities, and exposure - it means so much for the growth of our players!

And special mention to our amazing supporters: Vuyo, who joined us as both a parent and Senior A player, Yuma, our SCORE volunteer from the Netherlands, and Zuki Zantsi, who came through to support as a proud parent. Your presence and moral support is really appreciated! 🙌🏾

We also extend our sincere gratitude to Mandy Hermanus, Head of Netball at La Rochelle, for always including us in these opportunities and to Coach Nicolene, Cape Winelands Coaches Convener, for her continued support!

This was an unforgettable experience for our girls, and we are already looking forward to the next one! 💙