Personal message

Who I Am:

Hi, my name is Nikela Cele, I’m a 15-year-old robotics enthusiast from Grabouw, Western Cape, South Africa. I’m a proud member of team Texpand, a Cape Town based robotics team of high schoolers competing in the international First Tech Challenge (FTC).

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I hope to inspire young people in South Africa by representing them at the FTC world championships. I dream of studying engineering at the world’s best Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of technology (MIT) and bring back my knowledge that would help our country advance in space technology.

The Situation:

I’m part of an FTC robotics team called Texpand based in Cape Town. After a landslide victory at the South African national competition. We were crowned champions of South Africa and were formally invited to the world championships competition in Houston, Texas in the United States of America, to represent our country on the world stage.

I was selected as a rookie to travel with the senior team to the world championship. The team currently only has funding for a few senior team members and two coaches. I am presented with a new challenge of raising R90,000 ahead of the world’s competition from the 17 to the 20th of April. The amount needed for visa, accommodation, travel in Houston between the competition and the hotel, and the plane tickets to get there Is substantial. I wouldn’t like to miss this life changing opportunity.

Why We Need Your Support:

We are reaching out to our community, friends and supporters to ask for your help. Your generous donations would help with the critical expenses that include travel, accommodation and other necessities. Ensuring that I would be able to join my team at the world’s competition, which is such a pivotal event. This is more than a competition to me; it’s a opportunity to learn, to grow and expand my world view and the options open to me in the future.

 

About FIRST And Texpand:

TEXPAND is the first South African team to win the first place Think Award at the First Tech Challenge (FTC) world championships last year. Crowned champions of South Africa twice in a row at the national level and ranked 15 on the global FTC Rankings right now.

 FIRST Tech Challenge students learn to think like engineers. Teams design, build, and code robots to compete in an alliance format against other teams. Robots are built from a reusable platform, powered by Android technology, and can be coded using a variety of levels of Java-based programming.

 

The Impact of Your Donation:

By contributing to my Backabuddy page, you are not just helping me financially; you are supporting the hopes and dreams, of many South Africans, their love for robotics and STEM and commitment to excellence. Every donation, no matter how big or small, will help ensure that no financial barriers will stomp on my dreams but that your contribution will instead help them flourish.

Be Part of My Story:

However, I need a little help to make this dream come true. The cost of travel, visa, and accommodation is too much for me and my family to afford. That’s why I’m asking for your support. My goal is to raise R90,000, which will cover all the expenses for me to attend the FTC worlds championships. Every dollar counts, and no donation is too small. Your generosity will make a huge difference in my life, and I will be forever grateful.

Please help me spread the word by sharing this page with your friends and family. Thank you so much for your kindness and support. Together, we can make this happen!

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