He's putting up to your hood and your home.

To hear your neighborhood story.

It's Leicester in your Lounge live on Kate Talk.

Today's Less than Your Lounge comes to you from the dining lounge at the Loyal Maritime Centier and Simonstown.

It's a school which this year celebrates its thirtieth anniversaries, so they can currently accommodate.

I think it's about sixty.

Seven learners here, but it's learners who are between the age of fifteen and eighteen, between grade ten and Grade twelve, who are doing studies subjects which then lead them to further education in the maritime sector and then possibly careers in the maritime industry.

Joining me now is.

Zuko soul Is, a Loyal alumnus and the head of operations here at Loyal.

Also joined by Simum keller In Dongizu, who is a former hit boy and aspiring navigation officer.

Gentlemen, thanks so much for joining us.

Really appreciate it and thanks so much for having as it's been really educating about the school and the pipeline from being a youngster fifteen years old.

Great then, and you can start a further education campaign a further career platform right here, Zuker, tell about your connection with Loyal.

You're a former alumnus, I am am your current alumnus.

You know, a former you are an alumnus of Loyal.

And thank you very much for having us.

Have you have us?

Yes, I am a former, an alumnus of low Hill, a class of two thousand and six.

And yeah, I came to know about Lowy Hill when I visited my aunt and uncle for a holiday in December and three.

I heard about it, and that coming from a landlocked town, I was very interested in anything to do with the ocean.

Where's that Cathcot, Okay.

In the middle of the Eastern Cap And yeah, heard about it.

I had to apply and I came to see mister Inpin and had an interview and the raceless history as they see and.

And so what what was the experience you You you come from a landlockedown in the interior of the Eastern Cape.

There may be a couple of dams, but not open water.

No, so what was your what was your first introduction to say, well, maritime studies, Well, that's a that's that's a platform for me.

Absolutely.

Yeah, coming from a landlockedown.

Again, anything to do with the ocean is is interesting.

And hearing about this from my aunt.

My cousin came to the school but couldn't get into the program.

But yeah, again got into the program, and you know, it was a world of wonder for me, a world of opportunity.

Didn't or anything about the ocean.

I didn't know the difference between a boat and the ship as an example.

And at the end of the program, I was, you know, advanced.

I did advanced calculations on voyage, castings, formulas on general average you know, very very complex stuff.

So yeah, it was a wonderful journey.

And yeah, the arc of learning is remarkable.

See Mo'm calyn, thank you.

So it's also a Loyal alumnus as actually former head boy.

He's an aspiring navigation officer.

You're not from a land lockedown, you're from Meca, but you're from google Ado.

But how did you learn of the Loyal Center.

I got introduced to it by my assistance, she's also a former alumni of Loyal.

So the way that I got introduced to it is because that time I was sort of I'm not at home all the time, and then when I was at home, like during the holidays, my sister will not actually come back from home.

And when I asked my mum is she doing, like, no.

She's she's rowing.

Oh she went to a sailing camp.

Oh.

And then I would see her pictures in the ocean and everything.

But I also grew up as a person that loved the water, swimming and everything.

So when I saw that how many opportunities that she got then from Loyhill, I sort of wanted to get some research on it.

And in grade.

Nine I applied.

He had Loyal coming from I was also at Wamba Boys, and I was like, people like, why are you living one Boys going to Loyal I was like, I know, I've seen seen it from my sister and and and and how this place gave her many opportunities.

That's fascinating.

Look I would I would say I was fortunate to have when I was in high school what they still call them guidance teachers then, so they would ask you what you're interested in, what do you want to do, and these are the opportunities on where you could maybe do extra studies, where you could do a study in Chi three where it be technic on it, whether it be a university and this is the career opportunities.

I was very very lucky.

But many many kids, particularly from underserved communities, don't know the foggist that is something called marine studies.

There's they don't know that you can study the marine economy, nautical studies, that that the marine economy is a is a stream.

For them Zuko.

So so how important is a facility like this to inform and to educate younger people children say this is a career opportunity and you can start it, yeah at age fifteen, grade ten.

Really absolutely, it's the publicity on opportunities at sea are the ocean's economy is not as where it should be, and you know, schools focused schools like these are very important in serving that purpose, you know, outreach as well as just exposure.

I know that many of the lumnus have gone to their previous schools and spread the gospel about the maritime studies as well.

It's about the ocean's economy, the opportunities that are available and the need you know, to for young people to get involved the ocean economy or the ocean is the tenth province of South Africa and it's about time that people get acquainted to it, and yeah, the importance of Low Hill in spreading that.

They are they are I think sixty seven learners enrolled.

I think about over fifty stay on campus campus, Simon Gell, you're in uniform, you your applits, you look like you in naval uniform?

Is the is the a regimen that is drolled in We we.

Got here just before about half past five, saw some learners awake, just before six o'clock.

I actually saw learners in the lab already.

Is it drilled into you.

There's a certain regimen, there's a route, there's a code.

Is this similar what you were then experienced when on the sea.

Yes.

So I think the word ship shape when someone says it must be ship shape, that's where it comes from.

And Loyal teaches you to be ship shaped in order for you to most for you, in order for you to succeed in the manetime industry.

You sort of learn those values right here at Low Hill, things such as uniform, things such as being on time, because when you at sea, you expected to be on time.

And as I'm supposed and as I am getting introduced into the industry right now, I've already learned some of those values.

So I sort of have an upper food to that and.

It's better to start learning that at fifteen and nineteen.

Yes, Zuko, when we're talking about intake, so they're currently what sixty seven learners here?

Is that a hard limit?

Is there is a fitting process?

Do you give certain priority?

How would someone say I want to have my child consider maybe a career in maritime maritime studies, how do they get enrolled in loyal.

Thank you for the question, I just want to correct something.

The numbers are much more than that.

So for maritime economics, there's one hundred and forty one students, for nautical science, the fifty nine and one hundred and twenty two four.

Okay, marine sciences, So how many on living.

The the boarding facility can take up to sixty seven?

Okay, so that's the number sixty seven of our boarding but that's up into the one hundred absolutely, So talk about how what what's enrollment like?

So enrollment anyone can apply, all races from anywhere in South Africa can apply, and even abroad.

We've had into you know, Namibian students enrolled previously.

But the selection process is you have to get sixty percent for matth physics as well as your language and natural sciences in grade nine and then you apply and then if you are local, you come in for an interview.

There's quite a selection process, but we want to ensure that we don't only have people, but we have the right.

How many applications do you get here?

The hundreds, hundreds hundred and.

There's about I'm counting your three hundred.

This is about how three hundred, three hundred and twenty two who take these we take these subjects.

But in the hundreds of applications, what what is the cycle like windows windows?

Applications open next academic.

Yeah, yeah, so so they open in the first term and they close.

They closed recently eleventh July.

And yeah, and then you are we going through the process of selection at the moment.

Very very quickly.

You you in terms of the support from for for full learns from undid communities, are they fusty?

Is available?

Because this is I this institution is funded by the industry, so not a state industry.

It's funded by the by the maritime and shipping industry.

But what about those whose.

Parents may not be able to afford what is a really sternly level of education.

So we do offer services, sorry, adversary bursaries thanks to our generous donors.

At the moment, we are you know, always on the lookout for partnerships, always on the lookout for sponsors.

So yeah, we will share the details of how you can get in touch with us.

But yeah, we do.

We do offer support not only for situation boarding, but for also you know, health services, health services as an example in mental health services, you know, for those who come from troubled backgrounds.

So so there's that support again offered by the general support of our donors.

Well, really appreciate the former or current alumni of Loyal Maritime Center.

Really appreciate your time.

Zukersoul and Simon Kelly and Kiningy so he's also the former head boy.

You can find out more about the Loyal Center simply go to Lohill dot org.

Yes, there we go, and you can find out what the criteria is, how you would need to apply.

Thanks so much for joining us.