9 March 2022

"Our communities need to know what to do in a criminal situation, and we need more information about crime prevention", Tracey Wyngaard.

In the late 1990's, Tracey Wyngaard had just finished her studies and was in search of an opportunity to gain work experience. "I was reading the Plainsman one day, looking for work, when I came across an opportunity to volunteer at NICRO," she shared of her introduction to the NGO.

She decided to get involved as a volunteer to gain work experience but what she observed left a lasting impression.

"We were working with the job creation center at the time. We were helping ex-offenders, who had been released from prison, to earn an income," she continued before sharing how her time at the center challenged her perspective.

"Meeting some of the ex-offenders, and learning about their background was quite an eye-opener. They weren't always what you would expect. These were often people who had come on hard times and were just in a desperate situation", she shared.

Tracey added that what stood out most at the time were the responses that she received when running the community workshops with NICRO. "The community outreach was especially impactful; seeing communities come out to support the initiative, and to engage with us was inspiring.

"People would come up to us as volunteers after we hosted a workshop, wanting to get involved", she continued.

Today, as she looks back on her time with NICRO, Tracey would like to see more people become involved in the organisation.

"More people need to know what NICRO is and what the organization does," she added. Tracey Wyngaard endorses NICRO as an organisation that renders real impact in crime prevention and offender reintegration.

*Ends*