BOKAMOSO YOUTH FOUNDATION

Description

The Bokamoso Youth Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in Washington, DC. It was founded in 2008 to support the Bokamoso Life Centre (BLC), a non-profit organization in Winterveldt, South Africa. The BLC provides youth development and empowerment through social service programs, cultural arts, computer training, tertiary educational scholarship and employment assistance.
The Foundation also facilitates an annual cultural exchange trip between the Centre Youth and St. Andrews Episcopal School, Potomac, MD and a variety of churches and civic organizations in the greater Washington, DC area. St. Andrew's Episcopal Students also travel annually to South Africa to visit the Centre and other important historical and cultural sites in South Africa. The exchange program started in 2002, prior to the formal organization of the Foundation. It ran continuously until 2021 when it was suspended due to the COVID-19 restrictions.
Since its inception, 1500 youth have graduated from BLC's Youth Development Program; 350 youth have traveled to the United States as part of the Cultural Exchange Program; 120 St. Andrew's Episcopal SchoolStudents have traveled to South Africa. Since 2008 BLC has awarded 550 scholarships benefitting 400 local youth and provided books and transportation for many others. Bokamoso Youth are employed in a variety of fields including, nursing, engineering, education, social work, banking, film production, and computer technology.