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The Astonishing Story of Julia & Co.
 | | Julia's legs became paralyzed following failed surgery for a club foot when she was ten. In this photo, Julia and her classmates are in 6th grade. Our Sisters at St. Peter Claver insisted that Julia remain in school with them when no other school was willing to accommodate her disability. |
For someone confined to a wheelchair, Julia has a way of being in the thick of things. That's because, for the past eight years, her teachers and classmates at our St. Peter Claver School in Kroonstad, South Africa, would not hear of her being sidelined. Whether it was spelunking in prehistoric caves or heading upstairs to class in a school without an elevator, Julia was borne along by her classmates' and teachers' physical strength. Her courage, however, was -- and is -- all her own.
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Rotary International Steps in to Help
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A local Rotary International executive spoke at Julia's wheelchair presentation ceremony.
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As Julia aged, it grew more and more difficult for  her to maneuver in a manual wheelchair. Unbeknown to Julia, her teachers and classmates asked Rotary International to help raise funds for a motorized one. St. Peter Claver's High School Rotary Interact Club, the Kroonstad Rotary chapter and two Rotary chapters in Australia, along with our Sisters, raised enough money to purchase and present a state-of-the-art wheelchair to Julia last year. The best part? Julia was completely surprised. "Julia and her classmates have been an inspiration for us all," writes Sister Brigid Rose from St.Peter Claver School. "It's astonishing what we can accomplish together as a loving and inclusive community."
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