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01 August 2022 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Maryke Venter
UFS No student Hungry concert
Attending the first Winter Warmer Indoor Concert, hosted by the Faculty of Health Sciences, were, from the left: Prof Hanneke Brits, Dorah Klaas from UFS Institutional Advancement, Dr Nicholas Pearce, and Mantwa Makhakhe, Senior Financial Planner and Director at Sanlam.

“Don’t worry about a thing,
‘Cause every little thing gonna be all right
Singin’: “Don’t worry about a thing
‘Cause every little thing gonna be all right!”

An extract from the lyrics of Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds, performed by Dr Nicholas Pearce, Head of the Department of Surgery at the University of the Free State (UFS), and Prof Hanneke Brits, Associate Professor in the UFS Department of Family Medicine, singing along with the staff and students from the UFS Faculty of Health Sciences and the audience. This performance was one of the highlights during the first Winter Warmer Picnic Concert presented by the Faculty of Health Sciences. 

The faculty, besides displaying the talent of its medical students, the Free State Youth Wind Ensemble, the UFS Choir, and nationally renowned Lucy Sehloho, aimed to create a fun evening for staff, students, and the Bloemfontein community in order to raise awareness for hungry students. 

About students for students

It is a function about students for students, remarked Prof Prakash Naidoo, Vice-Rector: Operations, who opened the event. According to him, millions of people worldwide go hungry every day. “At the UFS, there are also many students who are not able to afford basic food stuffs. Often, essentials are not covered by student bursaries, leaving students hungry and struggling to perform at the academic level expected,” he said. 

To enter the Callie Human Centre on the Bloemfontein Campus where the concert was hosted, members of the audience could donate non-perishable food, sanitary items, or blankets. The 800 food parcels collected at the event will be distributed by the No Student Hungry programme

Besides students, staff members and their families who attended the concert and donated towards the NSH, the Life Rosepark Hospital and Sanlam also made financial contributions towards the programme. 

Community coming together for a good cause

The idea to host the concert and to see lecturers in the faculty perform, stemmed from the CANSA shavathon held earlier this year when more than R10 000 was raised for people suffering from cancer and other related illnesses. Dr Pearce indicated that, should students reach the R10 000 mark, he and Prof Brits would perform Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds. The original idea of one performance evolved into a two-hour concert, seeing members of the Bloemfontein community coming together for a good cause. 

“Due to your contribution, many students will not go hungry,” said Dr Pearce, thanking everyone who attended the concert and donated to the NSH programme.

• Should you also like to make a difference in someone’s life and make a cash donation to the No Student Hungry programme, please scan the QR code and follow the instructions. Your contribution can go a long way in making a difference in someone’s life. 

News Archive

UFS celebrates Madiba’s legacy with coin-laying ceremony on 18 July 2013
2013-07-15

 

Photo: Johann Roux
08 July 2013

The University of the Free State (UFS) will once again join South Africans as well as the broader international community on Thursday 18 July 2013 in celebration of the enduring legacy of beloved former statesman, Nelson Mandela.

The UFS aims to stay true to the spirit of giving and selflessness epitomised by Mandela Day, focusing on the university community as well as the city of Bloemfontein.

This year’s event will strive to eclipse the success achieved during the 2012 event which featured Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu as special guest.

The festivities on 18 July 2013 will kick off with university volunteers cleaning various areas of Bloemfontein. Departing from the Bloemfontein Campus at 09:00, the volunteers will clean areas in Heidedal and Mangaung with the help of the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality.

In Heidedal, the volunteers will clean the crèche on the corner of Parish and Lackay roads as well as the old clinic on the corner of Parish and De Vries. In Mangaung, the volunteers will tackle the bustling Free Square on the Dewetsdorp road.

The larger celebration will take place on the Red Square of the Bloemfontein Campus at 12:00. Long-time Madiba confidant, Zelda la Grange, will deliver a message, followed by a R5 coin-laying ceremony.

La Grange will be joined by the motorcycle riders affiliated to the Bikers for Nelson Mandela Day, OFM presenter Johrné van Huysteen who will conduct proceedings, UFS Vice-Chancellor and Rector Prof Jonathan Jansen as well as UFS students, staff, other dignitaries and special guests.

The programme also includes a lucky draw with winners standing the chance to win restored bicycles. Tickets can be purchased through Annelize Visagie at 051 401 3258 or at visagiea@ufs.ac.za. The winners will be announced during the ceremony on the Red Square.

All proceeds of the coin-laying ceremony and lucky draw will be contributed towards the university’s No Student Hungry (NSH) Programme.

The NSH Programme was established in 2011 to help ensure needy students are supplied with a food bursary which provides them with the necessary nourishment to excel in their academic studies. The initiative has since become a university-wide endeavour and currently serves more than 100 students daily on the Bloemfontein and Qwaqwa Campuses.

Rag Community Service will also cater for the specific needs which the harsh Free State winter causes – especially to the poor. Close to 500 blankets will be donated on Mandela Day to five different charities, including Mosamaria Aids Ministry, Choc House and Freshly Young Minds.

For further information, please contact Marissa van Jaarsveld on 051 401 3834 or at nostudenthungry@ufs.ac.za.

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