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A fact is that lots of talents are found in people living with disabilities. We once interviewed a talented young guy named, Kamogelo Mokoena – an artist using his mouth to make amazing drawings and got inspired. This time we had a nice chat with another talented lad all the way from Nwadzekudzeku Village, Giyani, Limpopo Province in South Africa. Outten Hlongwani  (23) is a talented poet living with disability has never let himself down. He discovered his talent in 2016 while doing Grade 7 at Tshembani Primary School. “I was a type of person who loved to write poems, so I decided to write my own poems and excelled. In 2018, I started to focus more after inspired by “ Ntombi Ya Mutsonga ” and told myself that I can make it. My first poem was titled “Ndzi Lwerini” which was also recorded. In 2019, I wrote about 30 poems but was not perfect, this year I started writing a drama book called " Swihundla hasi ka Malwangu ”. I took it to Lingua Franca publishers but never got any feedback. I also released a gospel song titled “ Nkhensa Yehova ”, he said. People living with disability are still facing a challenge of being not taken serious. However, Outten still believes that the sky is the limit to every human being. “My dream is to see myself appearing on TV screens reciting my poems and see my work being all over the world. My advice to all people living with disability is to believe in themselves and never be afraid of taking more risks in life. They must not take decision to impress anyone but to benefit themselves”, he added. When asking him about our trending feature called “Poetry Corner” and said “You guys are doing wonderful work to expose their work, we are proud as Africans because now our work will be known because of you, you are trying your best to see everyone succeeding. Be Blessed” Youth can now be ready to show their talents on 16th June 2024, when Outten host his 1st annual competition under his foundation called “Rock Voice Foundation”. “Lastly, I want to thank all the people who support me, I will always be there for them, keep doing great things and promise to never disappoint them”, he concluded. Rise Africans Newspaper would love to see all people holding hands, working together and achieve more despite their health condition, race, culture or background. We are proud of Outten! He can be found: WhatsApp ( 063 968 1377) Facebook ( Rock Voice Outten or Rock Voice foundation) tiktok ( rockvoicefoundation01)

We are back with another inspiration story by Africans, we urge all Risers to read and be inspired. Lydia Nemafhohoni is no stranger to our newspaper; she is now a part of family. This hardworking lady is from Ha Rambuda Dzimauli Traditional Authority, Pile Village, Vhembe District, Thulamela Municipality, Limpopo Province in South Africa. “Happy to be back again to share another story with Rise Africans Newspaper family. Living with disability really keeps me strong (I use wheelchair), my love for football started long time. I remember listening to Kaizer Chiefs (South African professional soccer team) game on radio at a very young age. There was a team in my village called “ Pile Fast Mighty Killers ” which was joyful to watch, and another team called “ Badirammogo Peacemakers ”. I then chose to support “Pile Shinning Stars” which later changed its name to “Pile Rama” then “Managa Uprising Stars”, she said. Mr Ndoweni Joseph Managa, Lydia’s step father owned a Managa Uprising Stars  (currently called Managa Rising Stars Academy )  and surprisingly chose her to take over a team in 2022. He promised to assist her financially and the rest is history. “I really did not know why he chose me to manage the team. My first task was to build a management team of the club. I found out that the club did not have a soccer kit so I went to Mr David Thidiela (Black Leopards FC – Chairman) to ask for an assistant and he humbly gave me a soccer kit. From there many people like Mphohoni Lawrence, Emmanuel Managa, Rudzani Managa, Aron Sirwali and Nefale – big lawyer decided to sponsor us with soccer kit, soccer boots and other things”, added Lydia. In 2022/23 season, the team failed to take a league but ended up on 3rd position. It was a blessings cause the team managed to win the biggest tournament in Vhembe of Marshall tournament worth R 12 000,00. It also achieved second position in a local tournament called “Vhaphandi”.   “The big issue in a soccer industry is discipline, most of our players lack discipline! I used to tell them that am not doing this for them, they are the ones who will benefit but not me. Soccer players must have passion or else leave if they do not like. I like to develop young players because my father always has a passion for development”, she said. Managa Rising Stars Academy is working hard to get promotion to SAB League and Lydia’s dream is to join a board of VBA (Vhembe Football Association). Rise Africans Newspaper is proud to see African child rising to the top despite difficult circumstances. Hail Managa Rising Stars Academy Boss Lady! MORE INFORMATION can be found:  contact – 0768070141 email: makhulu49@gmail.com

Kobus Groenewald from Stilbaai in the Garden Route, collects tractors and other things from previous periods and restores them to their original condition. He belongs to veteran tractor groups and travels far and wide searching for original parts. He does the restoration work with complete dedication and patience. Kobus's son, Gielie, helps to restore the tractors and old cars and learns this skill from his father's good example. According to him, his father is a perfectionist when restoring old tractors, and he spares no effort to restore a tractor with original parts.   Kobus is an early riser who is impatient to start his day’s work, but he has vast amounts of patience in practising his hobby. Restoring a vintage tractor requires painstaking commitment, the patience of a saint, and a tremendous amount of resilience. Added to that is the passion for finishing the metalwork as smoothly as silk with the mark of a craftsman. He is doing the job perfectly for the sake of doing a good job. His work resulted in a large shed with not one but some 65 beautifully restored tractors, cars, and other farm implements. They stand proud to have been a testimony to this man’s work ethic for many decades. His restoration work has been acknowledged several times at the National Vintage Tractor and Engine Show as the best in the field. Each one of his entries is lovingly restored to its original. No fake or modern parts are used. If need be, he makes the parts himself. He often uses spare parts acquired over the years from across the country. Sometimes, a tractor, therefore, has to wait several years to be completed. He still has lots of tractors and other implements waiting to be restored. When completed, every tractor is in total working order and finished in the original colour. Kobus rarely leaves a tractor’s paintwork in its weather-beaten state, accentuating the worked-in sheen and contrasting with the painted tractors.  Kobus is not only a restorer of note; he is an outstanding storyteller. Forgotten brand names such as the Field Marshal and Massey Ferguson fill Kobus’s stories about how he acquired and restored each one of the tractors. He has travelled some 250,000 km with his 8-ton truck, going to shows, auctions, and far-off farms to seek out old tractors worth buying and restoring … and collecting stories. Read the full story in the Devoted magazine by following the links: https://online.pubhtml5.com/asxvv/sngi/  and https://devotedmag.co.za/

Poem: I've seen the world By : Lutho Mdashe I've seen . I've seen hearts that bleed to non-existence but still continue beating . I've seen sorrows that drowned into tears tarnishing bright tomorrows . I've seen a wiseacre leading nations into devilment . I've seen the most calmest faces with dangerous minds planning . Whatever plan they set out , they destroy . For they find peace in chaos . Yet they still portray the most calmest faces . There's more to what meets the eye , so they say . What is art ? That every human being is an artist at heart . That legends do not see with the eye neither do they lack eyesight . I've seen hope being the gleam of survival divulging great foresight . I've seen ghosts wondering with us the living dead not knowing where to head . I've seen newborns being granted their last beds right after they've just arrived . Some acrimonious as they realise that their journey has just began . Thousands have came . Many lived . Billions have passed . Only a few will make it . Some soon to arrive , I hope they don't . For I believe they come from a better place . What kind of sins they've done that they get sent straight to hell ? Lutho Mdashe , from Cape Town .

We really appreciate all the support we receive and your positive comments regarding our work on the newspaper. Today we bring your Rising star no: 121, one of the best actor Limpopo Province has ever produced. Andile “The Great”, as popularly known, born Andile Mamabolo (30) from Mankweng Township, Polokwane, Limpopo. He attended Mountainview Secondary School and currently furthering his studies at tertiary institution. “Thank you so much for this opportunity. Since the age of 4, I always loved acting and I remember telling my mom that one day I will one of the best actor. However, the sad part is that we do not have arts centres in our community around Limpopo Province. I have done many things in high school, dancing, choir, DJing but felt incomplete. One day a guy who was my mentor informed me about a lady who was looking for someone of my physique to portray a certain character and the rest is history, ” explained Andile The Great. Like many industries, Andile faces lot of challenges. “A Gauteng based TV Production will call you around 22h00 saying you are shooting the next day at 7h00. You are from Limpopo, no car, no family and friends in Gauteng, you hike the whole night and sleep at the garages. Tomorrow, you look exhausted and fail to make it on time”, he added Another challenges is where TV Productions keeps using same faces while there is lot of talents out there. Directors or producers only remember certain actors when they are doing low/no budget projects. Andile The Great has been involved in lot of projects such as, National Arts Festival Grahamstown with GET ATTITUDE , member of one of most fierce productions called MARATA HELELE , done play with LOMUTER PRODUCTION , has been a supporting cast in Skeem Saam back in 2014, directed some music videos, written and directed an award winning movie about GBV called BEHIND CLOSED DOORS 2 , acted in Integrity Millionaires, directed a series called CYBER CRIME, was a casting director and cameo in the music video of Senior Oat hit song called “ All in you ”. “Our community does not give local artists enough support, they only need you when you make it big and claim to know you. This must stop. To all the artists, I say they must be consistent, never lose hope, stay humble and leave room for improvement, do not underestimate yourself, do your research and just be yourself,” concluded The Great. Rise Africans Newspaper wishes is so proud to have him and all the best on his current projects. He can be contacted: Facebook : Andy AndileThe GreatMamabolo | TikTok :andilethegreat |Instagram:andilethegreat82| Twitter: @AndileTheGreat

There are some Risers we wish we can really meet them personally and have much fun since we do most of our interviews via Whatsapp. Buhle Mjuleni (21) is an amazing Poetess from King Williams Town but currently residing in Grahamstown. She is currently doing her second year at Rhodes University, studying for Bachelor of Social Sciences degree, majoring in Clinical Psychology and Politics. “Much appreciation for this wonderful opportunity, growing up, it was hard for me to open up about my feelings and thoughts with the people around me because I've always felt like I wasn't given enough space to be vulnerable which at some point in my life affected me a lot emotionally. I started writing and realized that every time I would write a poem or any kind of writing and feel some kind of relief. I've been writing since then because I find solace and healing in writing”, said Buhle. The brilliant student always believes that being emotionally vulnerable is something that one must deal with on their own. Writing remains a place where she gets peace. “There is too much support from our community, I can tell and now its up to Poets to keep on doing wonderful work. In 3 years, I want to see myself as a founder and a leader of a successful organization aiming to spread awareness on things that communities need an eye opening on, such as mental awareness, political issues, and so on. I'll like to say thanks to all that support my work, I appreciate them. There's still more that I'm planning to put out for them, and I hope that they continue to support me.”, concluded Buhle. Rise Africans Newspaper will always try to push African talent, we wish Buhle all the best!

As promised, we managed to have fun with our “ Best Reader ” for the month of February. This is a good platform where we engage with our “Risers” to appreciate their support. Roland G Blamah is from another beautiful country called Liberia, in West Africa. This 25 year old young man is currently studying at a vocational school called 4life Zoe Vocational Training Institute. “Am so excited for this wonderful opportunity, I came across Rise Africans Newspaper through a poetry competition on facebook. I must say the newspaper is doing a good work for us by exposing our talents to the world.  Receiving a number one “Best Reader Award” from a newspaper made me glued to the amazing publication”, said Roland. Rise Africans newspaper aims to put African nation together, regardless their home background. “Your contents are educative, entertaining and promoting. We learn much about each other and get massive promotion, mostly us Poets”, he added.  Roland is also a Poets and ready to work with anyone across the globe. We wish him all the best! “ Ee seh ”( thank you in Kpelle language - one of our sixteen tribes in Liberia) He can be contacted via facebook: Roland The Poet | Email: blamahroland2@gmail.com  | Contacts: +231770565733 | +231880734586

This is the second article about the work of our March community builder, Dietmar Joosten. Read also our previous article about the community builder and his work.   Emseni Farming, as its name implies, is farming with grace and sharing the grace with its neighbours. Over the years, Emseni has developed a blueprint for agriculture over the years, gracefully sharing skills and knowledge with emerging local farmers. Dietmar Joosten, this month’s community builder, is the farm manager of Emseni and, with his team, is making a difference in the lives of local farmers in the Kranskop area where it is situated.   One of Emseni's core values as a community-based business is uplifting and supporting rural communities. Emseni continuously pays it forward for the benefit of the community it serves. The community is not only actively involved in the development of the farm and its many diversified agricultural projects, but the farmers and the community have been working together over the years to bring upliftment and to change lives for the better.    The Kranskop area, where Emseni is situated, has limited job opportunities. Emseni provides job opportunities to thousands of locals who rely on agriculture. For many, these jobs at Emseni are their only source of income. Emseni has grown over the years with diversified and sustainable farming projects. It includes water bottling plants, export-quality avocados, a variety of vegetables, fruit cultivation, a dairy, and an artemisia plantation. Emeseni also has one of the country's most significant greenhouses for peppers and makes its compost, which is used in the avocado orchards. The various income streams benefit the community directly. Most importantly, they use peaceful and environmentally friendly methods in their farming activities. The diversification of projects it has dealt with over the years makes it stand out from the rest.    Most importantly, Dietmar believes in skills and knowledge transfer, making time for farmer-to-farmer learning. The Emseni team provides on-farm practical demonstrations in sustainable agriculture and hosts free practical workshops. The community is assisted in using the available land and given seedlings and other help and advice needed. Emseni has a memorandum of understanding with the Maphumulo Tropical Cooperation to provide training and mentorship programs to upcoming farmers. The cooperation's membership grows annually, and over 40 local farms are now part of this exciting project. With the revenue generated from the diversified agricultural projects, Emseni has expanded its operations to assist more people and finance its various outreach programs. Emseni recently added bee farming to its community outreach portfolios and has kicked off successfully.   Look out for Emseni's community bee farming initiative in our next article about our March community builder.   Follow the link to learn more about Emseni: https://online.pubhtml5.com/asxvv/fsqr/

Our Rising Star no: 212 this week is young and humble guy who is passion about his work. A guy who will never give until his work reaches global masses. Mack Mamaregana (27) is from Mankweng township, Limpopo Province in South Africa. Mack De Artsit, as popularly known, is a visual artist specialising in pencil, charcoal and painting. “ I started drawing in 2014 and practiced my way until I reach my current level. I love art and it is an easy way for me to follow the path drawing since it already grew in me. I enjoy my work and my highlight was making a sketch of Senzo Radebe (South African Actor) ”, he said. Like most of artist, marketing is a crucial part for Mack, although using social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Tik Tok, he still find it difficult to reach his targeted audience. “My prices are differ, like a pencil only without a frame ranges from R 1000,00 – R 6 000,00 from A4 – A1 size. A pencil colour without a frame (A4 = R 1300,00 – A1 = R 8000,00). Painting on canva, A2 = R 10 000, A1 = R 12 000,00, 30*36 = R 20 000,00, 36*40 R 40 000,00, 40*40 R 50 000,00. My clients are required to pay 50% before I start with the work and the portraits are completed within 3 – 5 days. One picture costs R 200,00 with FREE delivery around Polokwane and R 200,00 outside Polokwane” added Mack. His last message to all aspiring artist is to use the little that they have, respect their instruments and be patient with your progress. We plead to anyone to support our African brother by visiting his social media platforms: Facebook:@Mackthe2nd | Instagram: @mack_d_artist | Twitter: @artist mac |T iktok : mack_d_artist or via Whatsapp: +27 79 797 5151

Lidia Dube is a community builder par excellence and an excellent example of a woman of resilience, patience, and perseverance. When confronted with the gospel's truth, she did not shy away from her sin but confessed all and yielded her life to God. In 1968, Lidia felt the calling to become a co-worker in the ministry that the late Erlo Stegen was called to in KwaZulu-Natal. The difficulty of accepting this calling made her very ill to the point of almost losing her life. Only after surrendering to God’s will did the Lord heal her. In 1970, Erlo acquired a KwaSizabantu farm, meaning “the place where people receive help” in isiZulu. As a young person joining the work, Lidia was one of five first  Zulu co-workers who supported Erlo Stegen in the early days of his ministry. The land was wild and undeveloped. They had no food, and many people in spiritual need soon flocked to the Mission for help. With deep compassion, she helped the elderly, and out of gratitude for her help, they would give her mealies, which she took to the Mission to cook for the others. That was all they had at the time. After that, Lidia helped the men unearth wattle trees to prepare the fields for planting vegetables. She learned to drive a vehicle and drove from place to place, selling cabbages as an income for the Mission. More and more people arrived at the Mission for help. The handful of co-workers cared for all the visitors and their needs. At night, Lidia would crochet items which she sold for extra income. In 1974, Lidia felt God’s prompting to invite young children to youth services at KwaSizabantu. She initiated a youth conference. She first invited white children, and after that, the Zulu parents requested that their children attend. Ever since, youth conferences have been held twice a year at KwaSizabantu Mission, and have grown with approximately 5,000 to 6,000 children of mixed races attending free of charge. In 2009, Lidia felt immense concern for the youths who were drug addicts and living on the streets. She arranged for them to be brought to the Mission to share the Gospel with them and provide for their needs. The results were youths healed from addiction, restored relationships with their parents and communities, and a hope for their futures.  The CYPSA (Concerned Young People of SA) program was born. Despite the constant onslaughts and efforts from uninformed people and institutions to close down the program, it has grown from strength to strength over the years, and over 18,000 youth members have already been helped through the program. As a founding member of the KwaSizabantu Mission since 1970, Lidia’s counsel and guidance are sought by many, including royal households and people abroad. Through difficult years, she has persevered in serving and remaining faithful to God. (Read the full story of Lidia Dube in the Devoted Magazine, Issue 41. Follow the link: https://online.pubhtml5.com/asxvv/xwdm/ )

Dietmar Joosten is the hands-on farm manager of Emseni Farming. He and his team are constantly busy with projects that benefit the community. Dietmar is a community builder who works with his community by teaching them how to farm successfully. Apart from having an active community outreach program in which they teach and help locals how to farm successfully, they launched a community vegetable garden in collaboration with the KZN Premier’s office last year. They teach youngsters how to use a small empty area and turn it into a vegetable garden. Community vegetable gardens are not a new concept, but how Dietmar and his team at Emseni Farming do it is unique. Dietmar implemented the project in collaboration with several stakeholders, and it is growing in popularity. They teach the youth how to plant vegetables in small gardens at home and schools. Approximately 3,000  youngsters were each gifted seedlings in 2022  to kick off their home gardens. They were shown how to plant and care for the seedlings. They were encouraged to plant enough for themselves and to help neighbours. Dietmar and his team showed the young people a video of how to prepare a small garden in their backyards, fertilize it, and plant the seedlings. They demonstrated how they can use empty plastic bottles to create a mini hothouse to keep the young plants healthy while growing. “I want to encourage you to grow your vegetable gardens so you can help care for your families,” Dietmar told the youngsters during training. “In this way, you can help yourselves, and you can also help others. Maybe you can later pursue careers in food security”. Subsistence farming, where community members produce enough for themselves and their neighbours, is one of the productive ways in which young people can start from a very young age to make the most significant impact. The youth make up a considerable portion of South African communities. The younger they start, the more successful the country will be in helping communities to help themselves. Agriculture is one sector in which people can find meaningful employment, and the sooner they start learning how to do it, the better it gets. Emseni Farming is situated in the Kranskop area in KwaZulu-Natal, where jobs are scarce, and most communities rely on agriculture to make a living. The program is practical and aims to address the challenges of poverty by teaching them the skills needed to help themselves. But this is not where Dietmar’s contribution to the community ends. He also ran a successful bee farming at Emseni and started to help communities with bee farming. Emseni Farming has a memorandum of understanding with the Maphumulo Tropical Cooperation to provide training and mentorship programs to upcoming local farmers. The membership of the cooperation is growing annually. It now has over forty local community farmers as part of the program, who are assisted in how to farm avocados and help sell them. (Read more about the successful Emseni agricultural projects in Devoted magazine. Follow the link for Issue 36: https://online.pubhtml5.com/asxvv/fsqr/ and Issue 37: https://online.pubhtml5.com/asxvv/pgfx/ )