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01 July 2021 | Story Dikgapane Makhetha | Photo Supplied

This year, the young people of South Africa celebrated 45 years of the annual commemoration of Youth Day. The University of the Free State (UFS) Community Engagement (CE) office on the Qwaqwa Campus has engaged a number of stakeholders in the call to use football as a means of bringing people together, transforming lives, and enthusing communities. Through partnerships, community organisations have great potential to create opportunities for breaking down barriers and inspiring social cohesion, initiating enablement through the development of social projects, and promoting education and health awareness. 

On 16 June this year, local community organisations collaborated in the hosting of a soccer event for the youth of Qwaqwa at the FIFA Football for Hope Stadium in Tsheseng. The Agape Foundation for Community Development, Love Life, Right to Care, Youth in Action, Qwaqwa FIFA Project, and the Tsheseng Athletics Club were all stakeholders who diligently joined forces to ensure the successful launch of the tournament. Community development practitioners, who are trainees in the UFS Qwaqwa Department of Community Development, were garbed in departmental branded gear and have cautiously facilitated adherence to COVID-19 protocols.  About 250 people, including football fans and participants, attended and enjoyed the entertaining games. Through the partnered recreational project, the Qwaqwa Campus CE office responded to the 2021 Youth Day theme: ‘Growing Youth Employment for an inclusive and transformed society’, by enhancing opportunities for networking among stakeholders. Football is popularly known for promoting transformational social projects in diverse communities across the globe.

News Archive

New residences open on Bloemfontein Campus
2013-01-21

 

Photo: Johan Roux
21 January 2013



Beginning 2013, the Bloemfontein Campus is seeing the opening of two new residences where male and female students will be housed under one roof but in separate units. Each residence will house 250 students.

House ConLaurês and House Outeniqua were opened for their first-years and Residence Committee (RC) on Friday 18 January 2013. The two newly Residence Heads, Mr Frank Makhabane (ConLaurês) and Mrs Leani Wimble (Outeniqua) welcomed the new residents.

The uniqueness of these residences is that they will be the first co-ed residences on campus. These residences are wheel chair friendly with fully equipped disabled rooms available. All signage has also been done in Braille. Each floor of the new residences has two lounges, as well as a fully fitted kitchen.

The Prime of House ConLaurês, Sherilyn Roelofse, says, “We aim to create a living space that is holistic and welcoming and will allow our residence members to be able to excel in a number of things”. Sherilyn says ConLaurês comes from the word “Condo Laurus”, which means dreams of victory. The House’s slogan is “The Symphony of Dreams”. Students came up with the name for the residence.

Tsatsi Mokoena, RC member responsible for RAG at House ConLaurês says RC members have been working hard for the past few months, trying to imagine how to do things without a physical structure. ConLaurês will be a residence with an inspirational living space where each student feels welcome, respected for who they are and at home, so that they will have the confidence to follow their dreams.”

The Prime of Outeniqua, Vusumzi Mesatywa says, “Change is always welcome and that is the mindset that we will be embracing as the new residences. When a student graduates, we need them to graduate not only as academics, but also as humans, holistic beings”.

Marla Stanier, RC First-Year Mentor at Outeniqua, says that new experiences await every student that walks through the doors of the residence. “As excited as we are, this new experience will test us in many ways.However, if we stand together as one, we will succeed.”

Mr Quintin Koetaan, Director of Housing and Residence Affairs, says, “The opening of ConLaurês and Outeniqua is a dream come true, providing accommodation for a new generation of students in the 21st Century”.

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