An 11-year-old Grahamstown schoolgirl inspired to save the endangered African rhino from extinction during a helicopter flip with a wildlife vet two years ago, has raised R100000 to fight poaching.Diocesan School for Girls (DSG) Grade 7 pupil Jules Murray, who was living in Hong Kong with her parents at the time, came home to South Africa two years ago to hand over R30000 she had raised.
The money was presented to Dr Will Fowlds’s acclaimed Chipembere Rhino Foundation and he took her on the helicopter flip to thank her.
Murray was so touched by the experience of flying with Fowlds and darting and collaring a rhino that she returned to Hong Kong and raised another R70000 over the next two years.
Her mother, Bloss, said Jules (who was only 11 at the time) first held a birthday party where she got Hong Kong friends to paint “Save the Rhino” pictures which were auctioned off afterwards – raising the R30000.
Instead of stopping after the helicopter flip, the youngster started a fund and raised another R30000 last year when she bought beaded rhino and other trinkets from local Africa-based charities and took them home where she set up stalls at Hong Kong school markets and sold them.
Her campaign attracted widespread media attention.
At her 12th birthday party last year, Jules, who has set up her own fundraising group called JuMu on Facebook, bought 90 white ceramic rhinos in South Africa and returned to Hong Kong and sold them to friends – who then painted them.
During her time in Hong Kong, she raised a total of R100000 for Chipembere before returning with her family to live in Grahamstown at the beginning of the year.
Bloss said a campaign has now been started in the City of Saints to try and introduce the scheme to other schools after DSG allowed students to wear the R20 bands with their uniforms.
As a result of her untiring fundraising, the hardworking schoolgirl, now aged 13, was invited to last week’s World Youth Rhino Summit.
“The privilege of meeting conservation icons like Dr Ian Player, Ted Reilly and Kingsley Holgate has inspired her to do more for the rhino.
“The whole experience has inspired her to become a wildlife vet,” her mother said.
The Dispatch was unable to speak directly to Jules yesterday as she was in school at the time. — davidm@dispatch.co.za
Inspired pupil, 11, helps raise R100 000 to save rhinos
The money was presented to Dr Will Fowlds’s acclaimed Chipembere Rhino Foundation and he took her on the helicopter flip to thank her.
Murray was so touched by the experience of flying with Fowlds and darting and collaring a rhino that she returned to Hong Kong and raised another R70000 over the next two years.
Her mother, Bloss, said Jules (who was only 11 at the time) first held a birthday party where she got Hong Kong friends to paint “Save the Rhino” pictures which were auctioned off afterwards – raising the R30000.
Instead of stopping after the helicopter flip, the youngster started a fund and raised another R30000 last year when she bought beaded rhino and other trinkets from local Africa-based charities and took them home where she set up stalls at Hong Kong school markets and sold them.
Her campaign attracted widespread media attention.
At her 12th birthday party last year, Jules, who has set up her own fundraising group called JuMu on Facebook, bought 90 white ceramic rhinos in South Africa and returned to Hong Kong and sold them to friends – who then painted them.
During her time in Hong Kong, she raised a total of R100000 for Chipembere before returning with her family to live in Grahamstown at the beginning of the year.
Bloss said a campaign has now been started in the City of Saints to try and introduce the scheme to other schools after DSG allowed students to wear the R20 bands with their uniforms.
As a result of her untiring fundraising, the hardworking schoolgirl, now aged 13, was invited to last week’s World Youth Rhino Summit.
“The privilege of meeting conservation icons like Dr Ian Player, Ted Reilly and Kingsley Holgate has inspired her to do more for the rhino.
“The whole experience has inspired her to become a wildlife vet,” her mother said.
The Dispatch was unable to speak directly to Jules yesterday as she was in school at the time. — davidm@dispatch.co.za
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