Contents
“…never lose hope, as hope is the invincible crucible through which seemingly impossible futures become possible.”
Contents, continued
Azuke's Thoughts
Societies are built. Places and people that escape hardship and suffering, do so by design, deliberately, daily and over time. This is the quiet secret of every transformation worth the name. It can be done.
But it is not the work of a season. It begins where everything built to last begins, with the foundation. Ours is not a building or a budget. It is a culture, chosen on purpose and held to until it became real, built on care and dignity and the long view. Get the foundation right, and everything can stand on it.
On that ground, PACT grows people, and people cannot be rushed. Growth is slow, and it is gloriously individual. It is one child who learns to read. One young person who finds their feet. One life that turns because someone stayed long enough to see it through. We carry each child the long way round: from the earliest foundations, through the pathways where they practise and the skills they earn, into a life they lead themselves. And one child at a time, that is how a Karoo is transformed.
The work asks for stamina far more than inspiration. From the outside, a town beginning to change looks almost still, calm and unhurried at the surface. What you cannot see is the effort beneath it: the foundation laid and relayed, the patience, the thousand small labours holding the whole thing up and pushing it forward. You lay the foundation, you wait, and you build again. And one day you look up, and a town has changed.
That is what we are building here. Living proof that a community can be engineered toward dignity, and that the engine of it is its own young people. You will meet them in these pages: the child who has discovered she is an artist, the young man who looks at his life and chooses it, the crew who ran a festival that drew the country to a Karoo dorp.
This year we lay more of the foundation. An academy that turns training into careers that hold. A space where our young people carry this story to the world in their own voices. And Education 2050, because the work runs in decades, and we are building, deliberately, for the children who will inherit it.
This is not a dream we are asking you to admire. It is a future we are asking you to help build, as so many of you already have.
Enkosi. Dankie. Thank you.
A Model of Change
One continuous journey, emotional and physical sandboxes to grow, play and learn in, turning, year on year, from the earliest child to a transformed Karoo.
Key areas of focus
What each stage holds, in detail, the programmes and competencies that carry a child around the circle, from the earliest years to a transformed Karoo.
Three
pathways
Three pathways run in parallel, but they are woven together. People, skills and ideas cross between them: what a young person learns on one path becomes a livelihood they earn on another, and a community they belong to on a third.
The pathways are not silos. Where they meet, a young person carries skills, livelihood and belonging across from one to the next. What is learned becomes a way to earn, and a community to belong to.
We don’t work
in a silo
We view collaboration as a strategic principle, fundamental to creating change. The Centre works hand in hand with NGOs, practitioners and artists across the arts and education space, locally and globally. We do not do this alone, and we are grateful to all who build alongside us.
“Take hands and hold hands, without breaking, until the shared vision is realised.”
The evidence, and our own experience, point the same way: complex social problems are not solved by any one organisation acting alone. Current thinking in the sector, from collective impact to community-led development, keeps arriving at the same truth, that lasting change is built between organisations, not inside a single one.
So we have made it our business to collaborate and partner, without compromising our values. We know we do not do this alone, and we would not want to. We are humbled by, and grateful for, every partner, funder, school, business and neighbour who builds alongside us.
“How will we navigate this road, less travelled, together, where our divergent roads meet and become one, in vision and intent?”
The road to a new way of life within the Karoo is built on the understanding of where we come from, in this community, our common history, what is beautiful about that, what is painful and deeply traumatic, the institutional injustices that we cannot wish away, and what we need to address to bring about healing and restoration, while nurturing that which is precious within us all.
We ask the question at PACT: how will we navigate this road, less travelled, together, where our divergent roads meet and become one, in vision and intent?
Our vision statements of the past 13/14 years have pointed us to a kinder, safer, healthier world, a world where there is common community purpose; a vision that speaks of calling us all to our higher selves, to build a world that is fair and equitable, even for the most vulnerable.
PACT does not doubt for a moment that this is possible: “not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit.”
“We are incredibly grateful for the dedication and passion the teachers bring to the project. Thank you for making music so accessible and inspiring for our children.”
In their
own words
The year told by the people who live it, from the youngest learners to the youth crew who run the festival. Many voices, and a colour for each.
Interviews done by Renichia and Rivaldo.
Blink Begin
ECD Centre
The children, in their own words, what they love at the Centre, what they are working on, and what they would miss most.
A note on the name: the ECD and Speel en Leer children call PACT “Poppie”, their own affectionate nickname for the Centre, which you will hear throughout their words.
Each child was given a paper heart and asked to draw what makes them happy, Jaydin drew a house, because the Centre feels like home. Interviews with Renichia and Rivaldo at the PACT Centre.
Speel
en Leer
Play and learn. Asked to speak for themselves, about what they love, what they are working on, what they would change.
Kunsblom
Ongoing art projects at the PACT Centre, made together by visiting art mentors, PACT art facilitators and the Speel en Leer children.
This year's subject is the Pachypodium namaquanum — known to locals as the Elephant's Trunk, or Halfmens — a striking and ancient succulent, as sculptural as the landscape it calls home.
Working with pencil, ink and observation, the young artists have spent months learning to truly look: to find beauty in a spine, a curve, a shadow. The final drawing, in soft pastel, is 15 m long, and was then divided into 1 m individual works.
The results are works of quiet confidence and real wonder. They were exhibited at the PACT Centre for Journey to Jazz.
Sonia Martins Mateus (France) and artist Wonder (SA) worked with Kunsblom junior artists to create this mural at Prince Albert Primary.
Sonia has an ongoing relationship with PACT, and the mural was one of the activations completed for Journey to Jazz.
PACT Chess
A standout of the year, a growing chess programme building focus, patience and pride, two practice days a week and a season of tournaments, certificates and trophies.
With thanks to our chess mentor, Gerhard Claasen.
6 tournaments · 128 players, Grade 1 to 12. Practice · two days a week
TuisKombuis
The Centre’s home kitchen. Before the learning starts, Aunt Landi is already up and cooking, because a child who is fed is a child who can begin.
With thanks to Alan and Hilda Clark, who have supported the feeding scheme since 2020.
An apple a day! PACT receives 3 bins a month of apples at 3,500 pieces per bin, 12 times a year: 125,000 apples from 3 farmers.
“Kosmaak gaan oor die glimlag op ’n kind se gesig, die verskil om ’n magie wat leeg is te voed, en om dit te kan doen met ’n goeie hart en die wete dat vir baie van die kinders dit hul enigste maaltyd van die dag is.”
Ek is Oulik
Outreach
Baby Jordan Leigh Norton, a bubbly six-month-old, first child to Natasha and grandchild to Anastasia and Vernon Norton, had her life tragically ended in 2005. The family has learnt to carry their grief and find healing by helping children in communities challenged by poverty and violence, so that no family is put through this kind of loss. Attending Journey to Jazz since 2023, Vernon and Anastasia came to love the children and youth of North End, and in Jordan's memory planned a boots, beanie and glove outreach so that every child at PACT in Prince Albert and Leeu Gamka has boots, socks, beanies and gloves this winter. Vernon and Anastasia remember Jordan's short life through the smiles and laughter of young children today.
The boots, beanie & glove winter outreach · in memory of Jordon Leigh
What started out as a fun way, away from home experiencing jazz music, a few glasses of wine (and others) with friends and being together, turned out to be much more. Along the way we met a community that, despite its difficulties and challenges, decided not to take this lying down and have proven to be talented, mindful and very resourceful. Having made contact with Prince Albert as a group of friends, it has been an eyeopener and another excuse to do what friends do: eat, drink and be merry.
In conclusion, my observation and opinion is that there is a small Karoo community who, despite lingering poverty and ongoing challenges, have decided through action to change their status quo and make a difference to their community now, as well as looking forward to presenting a better future for its young people while not forgetting their cultural heritage.
School
collaboration
With the local school, poetry and choir. Scholar's poems, sung and read; young voices Waldon and Cealine are working with.
Ek is ’n leier
Maar soms voel dit of ek wil steier
Dissipline is die vuur in my hart
Ek bou, klip vir klip aan môre se plan
My Ma is my rede
Vir die treë in my lewe
Elke boek wat ek oopmaak
Voel ek, maak saak
Gebore met ’n doel groter as myself
Maar met die Here se krag
Gee Hy, die mag
Om aan te hou te werk
Vir die dinge wat ek wil bereik
“I support the organisation, PACT, and their programmes because at this stage of my life it makes meaningful and impactful contributions to my personal growth and professional development. The positive impact it has had on me continues to inspire me to stay involved. I believe the programme can keep bringing positive change to the lives of young people in Prince Albert, through ongoing collaboration with individuals and organisations involved in youth development. I see myself working with these programmes.”
Parents
speak
Three parents on what changes when a child is held by a community.
“Ek kan ’n verbetering sien in my kind se skoolwerk. Die rapporte lyk goed aan die einde van die dag, die skool sien dit ook. Elke dag net ’n klein bietjie beter.”
“Every day, just a little bit better.”
“Toe my meisiekind uit Laingsburg gekom het, kon sy nie lees nie. Nou lees sy self, en sy kan ook lekker tel. Regtig, dit gaan vir my baie beter.”
“Now she reads on her own, and she counts well too.”
“My familie vra waarom my kinders elke keer Poppie toe kom. Ek sê altyd: hulle kom hier want daar’s liefde en aandag, dit is ’n veilige hawe. En as enkel-ouer, julle leer my kinders ook dissipline.”
“They come here because there is love and attention, it is a safe haven.”
“Stepping into a new journey where passion inspires purpose and creativity drives impact.”
Youth Crew
2025 / 26
The crew who carry the year, across Journey to Jazz, Crafts, Puppets and the Hospitality & events programme.
“Vir my gaan dit alles oor persoonlike ontwikkeling en werkskepping by PACT. Ek was ’n skaam mens, maar het geleer om meer uit my gemaksone te kom, en my selfvertroue het ook baie verbeter. Die opleiding en geleenthede wat ek deur PACT ontvang het, help my langtermyn, om nie net werk te kry nie, maar om eendag ’n besigheid van my eie te bedryf.”
“I was a shy person, but I learned to step out of my comfort zone, and my confidence improved a lot.”
“PACT staan op twee pilare: gemeenskap en jeug. Hulle verstaan jong mense in die Karoo se lewens. As ek na myself kyk, my selfvertroue het verbeter, en ek kan nou sonder probleme met mense kommunikeer; my leierskapsvaardighede het baie gegroei. Jeug kry keuses by PACT: jong mense kan kies, dwelms en alkohol, óf leer en vorentoe gaan in die lewe. Ek kies die lewe. Een dag sal ek graag my eie besigheid wil hê, en ander wil help. Iets wat ek by PACT geleer het: moenie huiwer om te vra nie.”
“Young people get a choice at PACT: drugs and alcohol, or learning and moving forward in life. I choose life.”
“As ek PACT moet beskryf, sal ek sê dis ’n behulpsame plek van vervulling en geleenthede. Ons kinders word vervul met baie liefde en verskeie geleenthede om hulself, asook die omgewing, te verbeter. In die tydperk wat ek deel is van die organisasie het ek persoonlik gegroei, ek het geleer om na die lewe met ’n ander perspektief te kyk, en my vaardighede om met kinders te werk het ook enorm verbeter. Ek beoog om in die nabye toekoms deel te wees van die organisasie as ’n ECD-onderwyser by Blink Begin.”
“I hope to soon be part of the organisation as an ECD teacher at Blink Begin.”
“My name is Diego Carolus. I am an intern at the PACT project in Leeu-Gamka. In a small place like Leeu-Gamka, there is not always clubs, facilities or classes, that’s why projects like these matter. They bring opportunities, strengthen children. Sport teaches discipline and teamwork to kids, art builds creativity, and together they give hope to our kids. Once a child builds these skills and believes in themselves, no one can take it away from them. Projects like these show why it is important to invest in small towns.”
Supporters
& friends
The people and institutions whose presence has shaped this year, in their own words.
The organisation has never contemplated giving up, even when progress was slow and hard-won. Its strength lies in the exceptional training invested in the people who run it, equipping young adults to manage new projects successfully and, most importantly, independently.”
“PACT operates on a value system of honesty, integrity, mutual respect and a deep love for the community they serve. For them, this is ‘heart work’, designed to restore the dignity and spirit of the Karoo’s most vulnerable citizens.”
“I support this organisation because it speaks to my heart. Seeing young people grow, gain confidence, and discover their potential is something that truly inspires me. Knowing that I can be part of a journey that positively impacts someone's life gives me a sense of purpose. Here, you do not simply get a voice. It's not just a programme to me, it's about people, their stories, and helping to create opportunities that can make a real difference.
I believe this programme makes a real difference in the lives of young people in Prince Albert. I have seen firsthand how it helps them build confidence, develop life skills, make positive choices, and believe in their future. The growth in their attitude, self-belief, and motivation is proof of the lasting impact it has on their lives. Prince Albert is my community, and helping our youth grow in confidence and reach their potential is something I care deeply about, I see myself still being involved with this programme in five years.”
Supporters,
continued
On music, mentorship, and what it means to build a whole community from the ground up.
“Dit is ’n voorreg om saam met jong musikante te werk, hulle groei te sien en deel te wees van ’n gemeenskap wat musiek gebruik om mense bymekaar te bring. Journey to Jazz is ’n inspirerende ervaring waarna ek elke jaar uitsien.”
“Journey to Jazz is an inspiring experience I look forward to every year.”
“What I find particularly inspiring about PACT is the organisation’s commitment to working alongside communities with dignity, creativity, and long-term vision, valuing people’s lived experiences, culture, and local strengths as central to meaningful change.”
It’s remarkable to witness PACT building a psychically whole community from the ground up. Here jazz serves not only as the destination but as the launchpad to the stars we see so clearly where the Swartberg meets the Karoo.”
PACT Education
& Arts Centre
PACT Centre has a unique position: we not only offer safety and comfort, but influence, motivate and support the most vulnerable in our community.
The Centre is the incubator of every idea that PACT has envisioned. Without it, our purpose diminishes, our value smaller.
Here, you don't simply get a voice, you get agency and a true sense of self. At the end of the day, our vision of bringing about fundamental social and economic change will only be achieved by working from the foundation up.
Children and youth: this is the heart and epicentre of our work. Here we see the manifestation of what is possible in our community.
June 2026,
one month
Average children per month · ARCO & KnipOog figures pending
The
Showroom
43 Church Street · the year-round home of theatre, cinema, music and conversation.
Working at The Showroom Theatre is such an amazing opportunity. It has this warmth that welcomes people to the shows, the togetherness in harmony. I feel that the theatre is an important jewel in our town as we want people to enjoy the beauty of arts and culture in different forms from music, movies to dance and so many more!
For the young people it creates more skills opportunities from front of house to bartender it gives them the platform to also fall in love with the arts and enjoy to the fullest!
A year on
the bill
PACT youth continue to lead the way at The Showroom, a multi-cultural creative space that not only showcases an array of local and international talent but remains at its core a training hub for community transformation and empowerment, where skills are nurtured in all areas of development, ranging from management, marketing, administration and front of house hospitality to events and conference hosting, plus behind the scenes services such as technical support, stage management, maintenance and sanitation care.
Marianne Thamm, A Night at the Musicals with Niel Rademan & Zanne Stapelberg, Josua na die Reën, David Krakauer & Kathleen Tagg from New York, DAVG & M.I.A, Roger Lucy, Bo Petersen and the #us4us auditions inspired and entertained audiences, to name but a few.
Other annual highlights remain to host and take hands with local and out of town festivals, but an exciting time at the Showroom is when we become the info & ticketing hub, pit stop for global guests and one of the performance venues for PACT's anchor event, the annual Journey to Jazz Festival.
Our stage saw intimate and soulful performances by Nomfundo Xaluva and Paras 'Sibalukhulu' Dlamini and band, plus various iconic jazz musicians.
Then not to forget, our weekly Wednesday Movie Club nights, they remain a hit with Prince Albert locals and visitors alike. A big thank you to Daniel Dercksen for curating these evenings.
ONS
The trading arm that turns a salon, a garden and a kitchen into work, training and dignity.
ONS grew out of the Centre’s Ek is Oulik project, and the name says what it is. ONS means “you and me”, us, together.
For me, ONS is where I watch young people become themselves. In the salon they learn to do nails and massage, and to hold a conversation while their hands are busy. Alongside it we celebrate the veld with our natural body range and lifestyle products.
The kitchen is where it all comes together. Our eatery draws straight from the ONS garden and other local growers, so the plate changes with whatever the soil gives, and Hospitality Academy students learn it from soil to seed to plate.
What I witness, day after day, is this: confidence grows with every meal served, knowledge with every lesson in the garden, and a sense of belonging with every person who walks through our door. That is what we are really building, a place that holds people while they earn, learn a trade, and are cared for.
The year
of the brand
This year ONS launched the PACT Hospitality Academy, in partnership with the Franschhoek Hospitality Academy, training its first cohort from soil to plate in the ONS garden and kitchen.
The students work with Chef Shane Jacobs and move from classroom to real service every week, a direct pathway into hospitality careers in the Karoo. More on the PACT Hospitality Academy page.
A salon, a seasonal garden, a natural body and lifestyle range and a weekly eatery, run together as one social enterprise, from soil to plate.
Leeu
Gamka
Die doel dat PACT in Leeu-Gamka begin het, is om alles wat in Prince Albert gedoen word ook hier op klein skaal te doen, en die kinders, nie net kinders nie, maar ook jong mense, besig te hou met programme. Die doel is om te werk met dié wat ’n droom het en passievol is om iets van hulle lewe te maak; om die kennis en vaardighede wat ons het aan hulle oor te dra, sodat hulle van verkeerde dinge kan wegbly en doelgerig deur die lewe gaan.
Die doel is om te kyk wie van hulle ’n talent het en met hom of haar te werk om daardie talent na vore te bring en ’n sukses daarvan te maak; om kinders te help wat die hulp nodig het, om hulle spesiaal te laat voel, en om ’n glimlag op elke kind se gesig te bring.
“To bring a smile to every child’s face.”
Crafts
Textile, puppetry, painting: the hands at work between events, and the partnerships turning craft into livelihoods.
This year saw the formalisation of partnerships with UNIMA and Frances van Hasselt Studios, and a broader commitment to crafts under the PACT umbrella.
PACT young creatives worked with Frances van Hasselt Studios to make beautiful mohair bangles for Journey to Jazz, and to re-imagine the Riel dancers’ festival outfits. It is an ongoing partnership, one that is steadily growing new craft micro-enterprises.
The UNIMA partnership brought handmade puppets, giant to small, to accompany the parade and the guests throughout Journey to Jazz. The puppet masters work alongside our young creatives to sharpen their own craft, and to pass it on, teaching children about puppet-making, expression and performance.
Lapland is the sewing arm of PACT. After a wonderful workshop and ongoing support from seamstress Benita, the small group has begun creating for the PACT crew as well as the ONS brand.
Frances van Hasselt Studios · UNIMA · Lapland · in partnership with PACT
“Om eerlik te wees, die feit dat PACT na my uitgereik het, het vir my bitter baie beteken. Dit het my weer in myself laat glo, en ek het weer besef alles wat ek kan vermag. Dit het my ook aangespoor om na kleiner detail in my produkte te kyk, asook om ander style te probeer. Ek het op ’n tyd opgegee op naaldwerk, want ek het soveel gesukkel. Nou geniet ek dit weer van voor af. As ander mense in my glo, hoekom kan ek nie in myself glo nie.”
“If other people believe in me, why can’t I believe in myself?”
Outa
Lappies
Festivals,
events &
activations
Journey to Jazz · Kunsblom · #us4us, the curated programme for visitors, and for ourselves.
“Events and festivals are game changers for community development, creating ongoing dialogues and exchanges between our insular world and the greater global family, elevating and enhancing our local experiences, and creating opportunities for youth to be participants and not voyeurs of life.”
Ingrid Wolfaardt · Founder
Journey
to Jazz, 2026
Journey to Jazz is an initiative of PACT that promotes skills and competencies in the creative sector. It is one of our products, and it uses the platform of jazz. Jazz itself is known as harmonising music that encourages nation-building and tolerance in a gentle and kind manner. Through the language of jazz, young people understand their place in society within local and global contexts, and from this they take an interest in expressing themselves and their ideas.
As a genre, jazz borrows from language, poetry, dance and native rhythms, rendering it the sonic wisdom of the past, present and future. Jazz travels to wherever it is practised, Japan, Nigeria, Johannesburg, Switzerland, and to the cultures these destinations consume. This encourages young people to collaborate, to imagine within their own context, and to embrace their roots, affirming the way they understand themselves, their culture and their landscape.
The culmination of all this, every beginning of May, is becoming a ritual. Visitors, jazz lovers and artists appreciate the intimate setting and being hosted by vibrant young people while enjoying the town’s amenities and the music. The festival creates a sanctuary for all to gather, co-create and enjoy the beauty it has to offer over a long weekend. Musicians, in their words, say “there is something special about doing it in Prince Albert”.
In the north end, the community, the schools and social structures are beginning to see Journey to Jazz as their own moment of hosting, engaging, participating and enjoying, one that is safe, authentic and healing for the town and its people.
Kronkeldraai
Chronicles
This year we made our own publication. Volume 1 of the Kronkeldraai Chronicles, a Journey to Jazz magazine written, photographed and produced in Prince Albert.
- The full festival programme and a hand-drawn town map
- Artist profiles, from Kyle Shepherd and William Kentridge to Donvino Prins, ¡Gracia! and Jonathan Rubain
- Featured reads on South African jazz history, with Matthew Blackman and Lukhanyo Mdingi’s Keeping Time
- The Halfmens botanical exhibition, artwork by our children
- A scholars’ poetry slam, the Sagra, and a roosterbrood recipe from ONS
Photography by Selwyn Maans of KnipOog, PACT’s youth film and photo enterprise, runs through the issue, from daily strings tuition to the 80-strong festival youth crew. Young writers, poets and artists share these pages as equals, their work set alongside the professionals.
With thanks to Prof. Sue Dean and Sam Reinders for their contributions to the Chronicles.
#us4us
A campaign by the community, for the community, what it set out to do, and who carried it.
As a musician, #us4us has been far more than just another concert on the calendar. Since 2016, I’ve had the privilege of watching it grow from a community event into a celebration of local talent that rivals stages far beyond our small town. Every year, artists from Prince Albert step onto a professional stage with world-class sound, lighting and production, proving that big dreams don’t only belong in big cities.
What I love most about #us4us is that it belongs to us. It’s a space where musicians, dancers, poets and performers can share their gifts, inspire one another, and remind us that talent has always lived here. I’ve laughed backstage, stressed over soundchecks, celebrated standing ovations, and occasionally wondered why I ever agreed to organise any of it in the first place. Yet every year, the magic happens again.
#us4us is more than a festival; it is a reminder of what a community can achieve when it believes in its own people.
Projects
Three things we are beginning, each a step toward work that is more durable, and more shared.
“PACT understands the importance of innovative thought and execution to remain relevant and effective in moving the greater vision of an equitable and just society forward, where all voices count. This is informed by the realities of life in the streets, homes and hearts of the people of our region.”
PACT Hospitality
Academy
A pathway from the kitchen at PACT into real hospitality careers, built with people who know the trade.
Launched this year in partnership with the Franschhoek Hospitality Academy, the PACT Hospitality Academy gives young people in Prince Albert access to professional cooking education and practical, work-ready skills, taught by people who know the trade.
The first cohort learns from soil to plate in the ONS garden and kitchen with Chef Shane Jacobs, then cooks and serves real guests every week, a direct pathway from training into hospitality and tourism careers in the Karoo.
“The significance of the PACT Hospitality Academy extends beyond education and training. It represents an investment in the future of young people and the development of the hospitality industry in the Karoo. In partnership with the Franschhoek Hospitality Academy, PACT provides students with access to quality professional cooking education and practical skills that can open doors to meaningful careers. The Academy also demonstrates the power of partnerships in creating opportunities for talented young people, while contributing to skills development, employment and the long-term growth of hospitality and tourism in Prince Albert and surrounding communities.”
“I am here to share the love, the passion and the knowledge with young people who want to become professional chefs, and to show them that everything is possible, no matter the circumstance.”
With thanks to Dr Brett Bard for his lectures on seed to soil to plate.
Museum Services
Partnership
Putting local heritage into local hands, a partnership to care for, interpret and share what Prince Albert holds.
Museum Services Western Cape and the Fransie Pienaar Museum joined hands with Journey to Jazz for a heritage activation during the festival in May.
Lizelle Kruger, curator at the Castle of Good Hope, spent three weeks working through the archives of the Outa Lappies collection to create mobile pop-ups for schoolchildren. The Museum archive’s Stoepstories series also saw the light, with local storytellers regaling the audience with their early lives in town.
A new project entitled “Journey to Self”, supported by Museum Services and local historian Samuel Delport, was launched in July, led by PACT youth in researching and gathering stories, data and artefacts around the forced removals act and the birthing of the North End community.
“PACT is a shining example of meaningful community upliftment and social impact. It continues to create opportunities that inspire hope, restore dignity, and strengthen the social fabric of the community.”
Education
2050
A long view, what we want a child who starts at PACT today to be able to reach for, a generation from now.
In July 2025 PACT facilitated the first meeting that established the 2050 Education Working Group, with representatives from local private and public schools, Prince Albert Municipality, NGOs and community members.
Purpose: build a collective understanding of the Prince Albert educational space; engage and collaborate with business, local government, the WCED, national government, NGOs, schools and experts; and collectively build an educational model of excellence for the Prince Albert District.
Every child in our community thrives, born into learning, raised by a community, and empowered to reach their full potential.
Education 2050 mobilises families, schools and community partners in the Prince Albert district to meet each child where they are. We facilitate learning from birth through school, with early childhood programmes, teacher support, learner-focused teaching and family engagement. By working collaboratively, we ensure every child's development is supported, and no child is left behind.
With thanks to Thana De Clerk and Annemie Boshoff of Slimlappies, for taking minutes and facilitating the WCED ECD meeting.
PACT
Vision
“Contributing to the transformation of the socio-economic landscape of the region, restoring justice and striving for equitable opportunities…”
The
Trust
Prince Albert Community Trust · IT 2482/2013
Prince Albert Community Trust is a Non-Profit and Public Benefit Organisation, registered as a trust. PACT acts as an umbrella body and bona fide charity, channelling donations toward the welfare of the disadvantaged community of Prince Albert and the greater municipal area.
Financial
summary
+56% year on year
Directly to programming
Full audited statements available on request · earlier years published in the 2024/25 Annual Report.
Thank
yous
The year was carried by many hands. With gratitude to everyone who gave time, work, money and faith.
Partners
& friends
The institutions, businesses and families whose partnership makes the work possible.
This is the first PACT booklet FULLY created, curated, populated and designed by our in-house PACT team: Renichia Mooneys, Rivaldo Hattingh, Jonthy-lee Devenish, Selwyn Maans, Elcado Blom and Kim Winter.
Photography by Selwyn Maans and KnipOog Media of PACT, as well as Samantha Reinders.
What we set out to do,
and what we've delivered.
Eight delivery streams, tracked across three AGM booklets. The left column is what we set out to do in 2021/22; the right is where each stands today. The music wing became the Showroom Theatre, and three micro-enterprises grew into a seven-strong trading ecosystem.
How we track it: from paper hand registers in 2021 to a live interactive dashboard and expert weekly mentorship today.
Finding
my voice
“I arrived here looking for direction. I leave with purpose.”
This is the speech Waldon gave at his farewell at the PACT Centre. Waldon is moving to Switzerland to pursue a project he has set up in collaboration with a fellow musician.
Good morning, everyone. I'm not standing here today to motivate anyone. I'm not here because I have all the answers. I'm simply here to reflect on a journey that began ten years ago. And what's interesting is that this is probably the first time I've ever written a speech, which is funny, because I recently broke my glasses and I'm still waiting for my new ones. So after all these years of speaking without notes, the first time I decide to write a speech is the one time I can barely see it. But I suppose that's also a lesson I've learned over the years. Sometimes you don't wait for perfect conditions. Sometimes you just do it anyway. So let's hope for the best.
Most people here know me as someone who just takes the microphone and speaks; I've always trusted the moment to guide the words. But today is different, today the words are guiding me, through a journey that began ten years ago. When I think back to where it all started, I find myself in the streets of Prince Albert in 2016. I was 26, working at our local radio station, when I met Ingrid for the first time. She was wearing a black dress and one of those big sun hats. She approached me and asked, “Would you like to be the MC for us?” It seemed like such a small question at the time. But sometimes the biggest changes in our lives begin with the smallest invitations.
Two years later, in 2018, I joined PACT. I was 28. I had a job, but if I'm honest, I still didn't have direction. I had recently become a father, one of the greatest blessings in my life, but it also came with pressure, uncertainty, and a lot of questions about the future. I remember being judged because I didn't have a stable income. But more than that, I remember judging myself. I knew there had to be more for my life, but I didn't know what that looked like.
When I first arrived, I felt like a nobody. I spent a lot of time trying to fit in, trying to prove myself, worrying about what other people thought of me. The journey wasn't always easy. There were moments when I wanted to quit, moments when life felt overwhelming. I made mistakes. At one point I even went AWOL because I felt overwhelmed by everything around me. I'm not proud of that. But if there's one thing I've learned, it's that growth isn't about being perfect. Growth is about being willing to learn, willing to improve, and willing to come back when you've made mistakes. And I kept coming back.
Over time, something started to change. People began telling me, “You've become more confident.” I started worrying less about fitting in and more about growing. I started taking on responsibility. And eventually, I was given the opportunity to serve as Creative Arts Director. That role changed a lot for me. It gave me space to express myself, to collaborate with artists, create music, and bring ideas to life. For the first time, I felt like I wasn't trying to become someone else, I was becoming myself. What began with a simple invitation to hold a microphone became a journey that helped me find my voice.
Recently, Azuke shared something that stayed in my heart. She said this organization became a creative space for me, a place where I could grow, experiment, create, and express myself. And she was right. As I prepare to leave at the end of the month, I don't leave because I've stopped loving this organization. I leave because I have grown. It challenged me. It developed me. It gave me opportunities. And it helped me find my voice.
If there's one thing I can leave with the younger staff today, it's this: don't get too comfortable. Don't become so comfortable where you are that you stop growing. Ask yourself difficult questions. Challenge yourself. When you make mistakes, own them. When you're wrong, admit it. When life knocks you down, get back up. Growth doesn't happen inside your comfort zone, I know that because I've lived it.
If I had waited for perfect conditions, I probably wouldn't be standing here today. And if I waited for my new glasses to arrive, I'd miss this moment too. So don't wait for everything to be perfect. Start where you are. Use what you have. Learn as you go. And keep moving forward. The 26-year-old standing in the streets of Prince Albert would never believe that one day he'd stand in front of you and share this story, that he'd find purpose through creativity. But that's the power of growth, and the power of people who believe in you when you can't yet believe in yourself.
So thank you. Thank you for the lessons, the opportunities, the challenges. Thank you for helping me discover who I am. I arrived here looking for direction. I leave with purpose. And for that, I will always be grateful.
Waldon EwertsCreative Arts Leader, PACT · 2018-2026
That's a wrap,
thank you!
PACT.
An invitation to
Understanding
@pactrust_official8
azuke@pactrust.co.za