Cape Town – UWC's Creative Arts Choir will be holding a two-hour fund- and food-raising concert tomorrow to help ensure that no student has to write an exam on an empty stomach.
Last year's concert at the main hall was attended by 500 people. The food security concert initiative starts at 5pm and the entrance fee is R30, with people also being asked to donate foodstuffs.
Choirmaster Sibusiso Njeza, who works at the ResLive (student affairs) office, told the Cape Times on Friday: "In a few weeks' time students will be writing exams and some will be going hungry – this initiative helps bridge that gap.
"The choir saw this as an opportunity to give back to the community so we started the concert last year. We are supporting a skills, resource and exchange programme run by the ResLive office at UWC.
"When students are having a challenge with food, they can come to the office and we will help them.
"The concert is being held in the spirit of Christmas, which is the spirit of giving, hence we call it a Christmas concert and sing Christmas carols for two hours.
"Some donate money and others groceries like noodles, maize meal and rice – things that can be kept for quite some time.
"Once the concert is over, we will take whatever is raised through the ticket money or food and hand it back to the office so that when the exams begin and the students come to the office to request something to eat, no one goes to write an exam without having eaten."
Njeza said some students seem to find themselves in a bigger predicament this year.
"The problem seems to be worse than last year because we have students who didn't get their NSFAS funding, so as we speak that food room is empty. There is an urgent need.
"There are other initiatives happening but it's never enough due to the kind of background students come from. The funding from the NSFAS is also not enough.
"People can drop off foodstuffs at UWC throughout the year because there is always a need, especially at the beginning of the year, for students who come from far places who didn't get accommodation."
For more information email [email protected] or contact 079 875 3449.
