Selokolela mother gets a P284 000 extreme home makeover
GOSEGO MOTSUMI
A motley crowd of people from all walks of life gathered on a chilly Friday at the Sedupenyane home in Selokolela village in the Southern District to witness hope being restored to a distressed family whose son disappeared without a trace 29 years ago.
The home belonged to 82-year old Keboletse Sedupenyane whose son James, a soldier at the time, left home to Francistown to his employer to extend his compassionate leave and no one has seen nor heard from him ever since.
James’ mysterious disappearance as the breadwinner for his family was not only an emotional baggage for his loved ones but it also left them in an undesirable financial state. The family was left living in a dilapidated home until good samaritans landed a helping hand to make the space habitable through a collaborative initiative by corporate entities dubbed The Sedupenyane Extreme Makeover: Home Edition led by KED Interiors, a wholly citizen owned interior decoration company and other partners. Although their efforts could not match up to the pain of losing a child, the makeover sought to restore faith and dignity to the family, in memory of their son.
“The Sedupenyanes’ living condition broke my heart and after listening to their story I knew I had to do something even though we are a small company,” the founder of KED Interior, Kevin Saseng said.
“The house did not have a functioning front door and handles, the roof was leaking, it had multiple cracks and broken window glasses. In three months we were able to not only make the space habitable but aesthetically pleasing.”
The unveiling of the refurbished house on Sir Seretse Khama Day left onlookers gobsmacked. The visibly elated Sedupenyane-who had temporarily moved out of the space for renovations, face lit up as she was introduced to her new space spotting modern finishes, contemporary wallpapers, furniture pieces and art works. Saseng and his team had incorporated a sleek and uncluttered style to the space. Minimalism and functionality was also at the forefront of their decorative style and they managed to make good use of the small space to fit a bathroom and a fitted kitchen.
He said: “The idea was for our elderly mother to cook, bath and do everything inside the house. The space is tiled, the roof is waterproofed and wardrobes are fitted. All the resources and materials used for this project amount to a total of about P284 000.”
The Sedupenyane family’s story was discovered and penned by seasoned journalist Phemelo Maribeng who is also the initiative’s project coordinator. Maribeng met the family by fate when she was on assignment to another village called Moshana. The story surface during engagements with the local community who were also baffled by James’ mysterious disappearance. In 2012, James was declared dead by Justice Gaongalelwe of the High Court. The ruling also stated that he should be presumed dead within a period of seven years, from May 5th 1993.
Said Maribeng: “In April I went to Moshana to cover Kgotla meetings and I met Keboletse again. I went with her back to her house and I was not happy with its state. I contacted all the partners to help in any way they could and the initiative was born. The team worked diligently and I am happy that today we delivered a beautiful and dignified space for our mother.”
Other sponsors of the event include The Midweek Sun, Board Master Hyper Home, Exclusive Tiles, Boss Interiors, ED Lights, Botswana Guardian, Garona Group, Colours of Sound, Brave Heart, Chef Gibson, Tsompie Mokaila and Vincent Excellent Tours.