Julia Nompi Mavimbela ( 20 December 1917 – 16 July 2000 ) was a schoolteacher and community leader in South Africa . When public schools were closed because of the 1976 Soweto uprising , Mavimbela taught schoolchildren in Soweto how to garden and how to read . Mavimbela later co-founded Women for Peace , an organization for women of all races to work for democracy in South Africa . In 1981 she joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ( LDS Church ) and served in local church leadership
Soweto uprising
Soweto uprising
Julia Mavimbela