#MooiDinge was launched by Luke Koeries, of non-profit Kids are Kids, which he started in Ocean View three years ago.
#MooiDinge looks for good things happening in the neighbourhood and focuses on the people doing them.
“Ocean View is our home; it’s made up of our beloved community,” said Mr Koeries.
“Many people see the violence and gangs, and while that does exist, our actual community is made up of people who do wonderful things but don’t always get seen,”
He decided to rope in local youth to get the project off the ground.
“We have started videoing and interviewing people about their great work. Then we take all those videos and create one single video.
“That finished video is then taken to schools in the area and around to communities outside Ocean View, and, of course, it’s shown within Ocean View, to show our kids that there are better things to do, better things to look up to in life. We don’t want them to look up to the gunmen and drug dealers,” Mr Koeries said.
He believes everyone who sees
#MooiDinge will be inspired to start making a difference in their own lives.
“Many people don’t get the platform to share their story, and the great work they do because what they do is overshadowed by the negative things; and the negative things reach the media and social media faster then the positive things,” he said.
All that negativity, he said, threatened to overwhelm the hopes and dreams of the community’s children.
“They see it face to face and in the media and then they think that this is all there is to Ocean View. It really is sad to see what is happening to our generation, and I’m more than willing to move this project to other communities,” he said.
“It is all about giving the people a platform to share their story and presenting these uplifting stories to the youths in this community for them to use in their own lives.”
To find out more about the #Mooidinge project, call Luke at 074 011 7172.
