Latest Stories - Richard & Josephine Fundraise For Karen Garside Scholarship

5 Dec, 2017

We all enjoy learning about WK classmates who met on the hill, fell in love and eventually decided to make a life together. But love doesn’t only blossom among WK students. Sometimes, it blooms among staff members too.

On December 16, 2017, Richard Alexander, Head of Maths, and Josephine Alexander (formerly Ola-Busari), once Student Services Manager and Deputy Head of Emhlabeni Hostel, will celebrate their nuptials with friends and family on WK’s campus. Richard came to WK in 2000 as a Maths teacher and continues to inspire students to see and appreciate the beauty and possibilities in Maths. Josephine worked in Emhlabeni from 2002 to 2012, loving her interactions with students and helping them rise to the challenge of the IB programme.

Teachers do not enjoy the same liberties as students, so Richard and Josephine were very discreet about their relationship at first. After Josephine left Swaziland for Namibia and then South Africa, Richard’s many trips to visit her and her family in Nigeria didn’t go unnoticed. It soon became clear that they had fallen in love. They now spend their time between Mbabane and Pretoria, where Josephine teaches as a Senior Lecturer in the Department of English Studies at UNISA. We are delighted for them and wish them every happiness.

Like students, staff not only take away the experiences they had at WK, but they also continue to live its values. In this spirit, Richard and Josephine are asking their wedding guests to honour them through donations to the Karen Garside Scholarship, instead of giving them presents. Karen, a Dutch/British student from Malawi, arrived at Waterford in 2002, instantly forming a close bond with Josephine. Karen was vibrant, fun and respected by her classmates and her teachers. Tragically, she died in 2005 of cancer, shortly after leaving Waterford. This summer, her friends started a fund to raise money in her honour for a Swazi student to attend Waterford. To support this initiative and to encourage other alumni to do the same, WK has established a named scholarship for Karen.

We join Richard and Josephine in celebrating their wedding. We thank them for remembering Karen and including her in their special day.

Click here to read more about the Karen Garside Scholarship.

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