Mandela Day: We got our creative on!
This Mandela Day, the VirtualResource team swapped laptops for paintbrushes and spent the morning at Hope and Light School in Somerset West.
Hope and Light provides pre-primary, primary, and high school education to around 400 children from disadvantaged communities, a school that's close to our VR hearts. So when we heard we could bring a little colour to their walls? Sign us up!
Meet Paint SLPV
The project was led by Paint SLPV, run by the wonderful Charlie. An international, decorative artist who focuses on empowering young creatives in disadvantaged communities, giving them mentorship, real skills, and a hands-on shot at projects just like this one.
Paint SLPV's mission is simple: turn their community into a more vibrant, colourful place to live. Through murals and street art, Charlie and her team are working to lift up how their village looks and feels, and build a real sense of pride and belonging for the people who call it home.
What we got up to
We started the mural process alongside Charlie's team, taking a blank, white wall and turning it into something with real creative potential. It was genuinely lovely spending the morning with them, plenty of laughs, and the kind of good time that barely felt like work.
Charlie walked us through how they get a project started, and how something easy to overlook, like a wall, becomes something that stops people in their tracks. What stood out most was watching her with the kids, gentle guidance, but always letting them take the initiative with their creativity, while giving them the responsibility of showing respect for someone's property and the people they were working with. They were genuinely wonderful to work with.
By the time we left, the wall had already started shifting to something bright and full of life.
More than one day
For VR, this was one part of an ongoing relationship with VRCares' community partners. We might not be there to help them finish off their beautiful mural, but we'll always be there to lend a hand with wonderful initiatives like this one.
Want to be part of the next one?
VRCares runs initiatives like this throughout the year, from local volunteering days to community partnerships across the regions we work in. Follow VRCares on Instagram and Facebook to see what's coming up, or reach out if you'd like to get involved.