A final year student at Stellenbosch University will be able to graduate and have her family by her side, thanks to the kindness of HOT 102.7FM‘s listeners and the station’s Hot Cares Christmas programme.
On top of that, HOT 102.7FM’s intervention and subsequent airing of her story has resulted in the student being offered employment next year, including the offer of an internship at Volkswagen.
Born in Limpopo, 23-year-old Phophi Mudau moved away from her village in Venda to pursue her BCom Sciences degree, but her NSFAS funding didn’t stretch far enough to cover the last R47 000 needed for her to graduate.
With no financial support from her unemployed mother or estranged father, who left when she was a toddler, Phophi turned to an entrepreneurial solution: selling packets of sweets, sourced from Makro and marketed on Facebook, as a last resort to raise the funds she needs. Her goal was to sell at least 1000 packets before December to close the funding gap.
But, that’s when HOT 102.7FM entered the story.
The Hot Cares Christmas team sent the station’s Head of News, Tara Penny, to Stellenbosch to investigate and break the good news to Phophi, after linking up live with the HOT 1027 Breakfast team of Simon Parkinson, Bunny Majaja and Simon Hill in the studio.
As part of the Hot Cares Christmas, the station will be covering the cost of the the remaining balance of her tuition fees, totalling R47,000, enabling her to graduate. HOT 102.7FM will also be covering the cost of getting Phophi’s mother and sister to her graduation and providing her with a shopping voucher for her to purchase work outfits for the start of her career.
“Thank you, so, so much,” said a tearful Phophi. “I can’t believe this! What planet are you from? I want to thank you, not only for the financial support, but I’m a person who has been struggling with self-esteem and confidence issues, and believing in myself, and I didn’t know what taking this step would do. But, with what you’ve done, I truly believe that nothing will stand in my way in my life.”
“Phophi is exactly the type of deserving recipient we love helping with Hot Cares Christmas,” said Lloyd Madurai, Managing Director of HOT 102.7FM. “Despite the daunting challenge of raising that remaining money, she made a plan and refused to give up. We believe she’s got a bright future and that our gift to her is not a handout, but a sustainable solution and an investment in the future of this country.”
It’s been quite a run for HOT 102.7FM, which was recently named the winner in the ‘Best Local Radio Station’ category at the Best of Joburg Readers’ Choice Awards for a third consecutive year.
The station also raised a whopping R27.5 million in just 12 and a half hours at its annual Teddython Hot Cares charity fundraiser in November, ensuring a strong and satisfying end to the year and laying the groundwork for a 2025 full of promise, as HOT 102.7FM approaches its fifth year of being on air.
