Headmistress who goes extra mile is loved by all.
WITH the education system in the Eastern Cape in a state of disarray and school teachers being blamed for much of the chaos, heartwarming stories can be difficult to find.
So when the Daily Dispatch heard that the principal of Mconco Junior Secondary School (JSS) Tembela Baartman dug into her own pocket to save the life of a 16-year-old pupil suffering from chronic abdominal pains, the Dispatch had to find out more.
Baartman said she became concerned after the pupil, who is not being named at her family’s request, complained of pains in her stomach, back and waist almost daily.
“She used to cry a lot and complained of cramps in her legs too, which made it difficult for her to walk,” she recalled.
Baartman said she took her “bright” pupil to their local clinic several times but when her condition did not improve, she decided to approach her Libode family for permission to take her to a specialist doctor, a homeopath, in the Mthatha CBD.
But the girl’s deeply traditional family resisted her attempts as they believed that she had been bewitched.
Her pain was so unbearable that she missed her September exams.
Baartman said the poor family had spent a lot of money taking their child to traditional healers and bogus doctors who claimed they could cure the girl.
The doctors diagnosed her with ulcers and a traditional healer told them that she had been cursed, she said.
“I told my staff I am not going to give up and her mother finally agreed to come with me,” she said.
“Ma Bati” as she is fondly known in the Libode village, said the Grade 9 pupil was referred to Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital early this month, where doctors removed an ovarian cyst.
She was admitted at the hospital for one night and doctors told Baartman after the procedure that the cyst had blocked the outflow of menstrual blood when the girl reached puberty, forming a sac-like structure inside her.
According to the doctors, the girl would have died if the operation had been delayed.
“They said you have arrived just in time. It was about to rupture. I was shocked,” she said.
Asked how she felt, the girl’s face brightened and she said: “The pain is no more.” Her mother said she was at a loss for words in thanking Baartman.
Baartman said she spent more than R2 000 but did not want any reward.
Baartman is revered by her teaching staff for going beyond the call of duty to help those around her.
In September, she used her own car to take a widowed mother for help after she was hit by a stone on her forehead during an outbreak of taxi violence. The woman returned to her school with a blanket and a set of glasses after she was discharged.
Local chief Celuxolo Mkono described Baartman as a “good Samaritan” who helped to register villagers for social grants, established nutrition schemes, created jobs for unemployed villagers and found help for the bereaved.
“Here we have a principal who is involved in community affairs,” said Mkono. —
Principal saves life of suffering child
WITH the education system in the Eastern Cape in a state of disarray and school teachers being blamed for much of the chaos, heartwarming stories can be difficult to find.
So when the Daily Dispatch heard that the principal of Mconco Junior Secondary School (JSS) Tembela Baartman dug into her own pocket to save the life of a 16-year-old pupil suffering from chronic abdominal pains, the Dispatch had to find out more.
Baartman said she became concerned after the pupil, who is not being named at her family’s request, complained of pains in her stomach, back and waist almost daily.
“She used to cry a lot and complained of cramps in her legs too, which made it difficult for her to walk,” she recalled.
Baartman said she took her “bright” pupil to their local clinic several times but when her condition did not improve, she decided to approach her Libode family for permission to take her to a specialist doctor, a homeopath, in the Mthatha CBD.
But the girl’s deeply traditional family resisted her attempts as they believed that she had been bewitched.
Her pain was so unbearable that she missed her September exams.
Baartman said the poor family had spent a lot of money taking their child to traditional healers and bogus doctors who claimed they could cure the girl.
The doctors diagnosed her with ulcers and a traditional healer told them that she had been cursed, she said.
“I told my staff I am not going to give up and her mother finally agreed to come with me,” she said.
“Ma Bati” as she is fondly known in the Libode village, said the Grade 9 pupil was referred to Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital early this month, where doctors removed an ovarian cyst.
She was admitted at the hospital for one night and doctors told Baartman after the procedure that the cyst had blocked the outflow of menstrual blood when the girl reached puberty, forming a sac-like structure inside her.
According to the doctors, the girl would have died if the operation had been delayed.
“They said you have arrived just in time. It was about to rupture. I was shocked,” she said.
Asked how she felt, the girl’s face brightened and she said: “The pain is no more.” Her mother said she was at a loss for words in thanking Baartman.
Baartman said she spent more than R2 000 but did not want any reward.
Baartman is revered by her teaching staff for going beyond the call of duty to help those around her.
In September, she used her own car to take a widowed mother for help after she was hit by a stone on her forehead during an outbreak of taxi violence. The woman returned to her school with a blanket and a set of glasses after she was discharged.
Local chief Celuxolo Mkono described Baartman as a “good Samaritan” who helped to register villagers for social grants, established nutrition schemes, created jobs for unemployed villagers and found help for the bereaved.
“Here we have a principal who is involved in community affairs,” said Mkono. —
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Trending Now
Latest Videos