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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 Faculty of Health Sciences celebrates its newly qualified doctors
2016-12-09

Description: MBChB final-year students  Tags: MBChB final-year students  

The UFS medical students who obtained their
qualifications Cum Laude are: front row: Dr Madeli Jonker,
Dr Corli Leonard, Dr Jacques Kok, Dr Kelly Fuller.
Back row: Dr Henco Nel, Dr Dan Holmberg,
Dr Rikus Hoogenboezem and Dr Ben van Niekerk.
Photo: Marie-Louise du Toit


“Kovsies’ doctors stand out. They go the extra mile. Go out there and be a true representative of Kovsies’ servanthood.” These were the words of Prof Gert van Zyl, Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, at the annual function that was held by the School of Medicine for final-year medical students.

The function celebrates students who have obtained their MB ChB degrees, becoming qualified doctors. Prof Van Zyl went on to congratulate the students for thriving in a difficult year.  “From today onwards, your degrees are in the bag, and nobody can take that away from you,” said Prof Van Zyl.

Class of 2016 praised for their tenacity

A total of 116 students obtained the qualifications, and were acknowledged as the class that showed the most tenacity, commitment and dedication to their studies. Nine students obtained their MB ChB qualifications Cum Laude. The medical students will be graduating at the UFS Summer Graduations on 8 December 2016.

Henco Nel, Michael Linström, and Daniel Holmberg were recognised as the best overall performing students in the class of 2016. Nel received prizes for best student in the departments of Urology and Orthopaedic Surgery; Linström walked away with awards from the departments of Anaesthesiology, Family Medicine and Obstetrics and Gynaecology, and Holmberg in Internal Medicine, and Paediatrics and Child Health.

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