King David ‘like family’, says head girl Mandy Wu

Mandy Wu went from feeling like just another King David Linksfield (KDL) pupil to becoming head girl in matric last year, someone who was friendly to all students and an achiever in academics and on the sports field.

“To be a King David High School Linksfield [KDHSL] sports captain was my greatest honour,” says Wu, who lived in Harrismith, Free State, before joining KDL. She enjoyed many wins on the soccer, touch rugby, and hockey fields and on basketball courts in matric.

“My matric year was my best and favourite year of high school, which sounds strange because the majority of the year was filled with exams and stress. Earlier this year, I realised that the life I knew and loved would change in 12 months. So, the whole year was a highlight for me because I appreciated every little moment a little more because I knew it would be the last.”

Wu says her greatest achievement this year was doing everything she wanted to do. “I learned to maintain balance in my life between school, studying for exams, playing four sports, and maintaining a social life. I’m forever grateful to KDL for giving me the opportunity to excel academically while also pursuing my passion on the sports field.”

Wu, self-described as a woman of many words, knew every single student in the school and remembered the details of each person she spoke to.

“When I started at KDL, I felt like I was just another student because KDL is such a big school. I had seniors who helped me. I knew then that when I became a senior, I would go that extra mile to make every student feel accepted and valued. In my time as a senior, I loved it when a student from a different grade would smile or greet me in the hallways. That small act could make my bad day just a little better. I hoped that I could do the same for them. The school became my family away from home, where my peers and teachers always cared about me.”

Wu never imagined being named a head student leader. “I always did feel a bit out of place at school. But on announcement day, 28 July 2023, to hear the crowd cheer for me and to receive so many messages of support, it showed that I did belong at the school and that everything worked out how it was meant to be. I’m extremely grateful to my school for its continuous support throughout my time as head girl.”

Sports at KDHSL was more than just an extramural for Wu. “It was one of my families at school, consisting of sportsmen and sportswomen, who came together to share their love for their respective sports. Over my years at KDHSL, we have made our mark in many Johannesburg sports leagues with many teams being crowned champion.”

As co-captain of the girl’s first team touch rugby with Hannah Kaveberg last year, they lead the team to being crowned back-to-back league winners of the Central Gauteng Touch Rugby League, making the 2024 season only the second time KDHSL has won the title.

Although the touch rugby league runs at the same time as girls’ basketball, Wu also pursued her love of the latter sport, initially playing with the boys as there was no girls’ team. In her matric year, KDHSL boasted two undefeated competitive girls’ teams.

One week before her preliminary exams, Wu travelled with the girls’ soccer first team to Gqeberha, where Jewish schools from various provinces competed in the Shabbat Nachamu Tournament. “Our team remained undefeated over the four days and came home victorious.” It was also named the school’s Girls Team of the Year in 2024.

“Our first team soccer girls also competed in the open JVW Diamond School League, which consisted of 62 teams across Gauteng. Eighty-four days; 50 goals; one team; one dream. We went on to win bronze. I couldn’t have asked for a better way to end my time at the school.”

Wu, who doesn’t come from a Jewish background, began her journey at KDL as her parents wanted her and her sister “to receive a better education, so they decided to move us to Johannesburg to study at the top private school, KDL.”

At the time, Wu didn’t know much about Judaism. “However, through my years of learning at KDL, I have grown to love the Jewish religion, Hebrew, and Israel. Which is also why I chose to take Hebrew as a matric subject,” says Wu, who will be studying medicine at the University of the Witwatersrand this year.