A night to remember

 

With Black and Gold as the theme, the annual alumni gala function on 15 September turned out to be a real red-carpet event.

 

The evening’s formal programme saw Mr Clement Manoko, the executive director for corporate relations and marketing, addressing the audience and welcoming alumni and other guests such as the local Chamber of Commerce.

 

The evening’s entertainment catered for a variety of music tastes and every foot in the house was tapping after the first song.The show started with the campus’s very own Ebukhosini Residence Acapella Group, followed by Afrikaans music diva Liezel Pieters. Brian Temba wound the evening down with soothing rhythm and blues numbers.

 

 

Returning home

 

“Welcome home, alumni!” With these words Prof Linda du Plessis, deputy vice-chancellor of the campus in Vanderbijlpark, welcomed members of the Young Alumni fraternity back to the campus for the annual NWU Alumni Homecoming.

 

This year’s event on 30 September saw more than 300 members of the Young Alumni fraternity gathering on the lush green banks of the Vaal River to celebrate friendship and the affiliation they share with their alma mater.

 

Good music and a traditional braai created a festive atmosphere reminiscent of their campus life experience.However, this was also a party with a purpose: to raise funds to assist needy students. “We received so much during our time at university, we want others to reap the same rewards we did,” says Mpho Mosia, a founding member of the Young Alumni fraternity.

A fond farewell to final-year students

 

Then, on 13 October, the campus in Vanderbijlpark wished their final-year students, who would soon be NWU alumni, a fond farewell.

 

At the event, held in the riverside lapa on the campus, Prof Susan Coetzee-Van Rooy, Acting Deputy Dean: Research of the Faculty Humanities, challenged the students to imagine themselves in 50 years’ time and write down three things they would tell their younger selves to do after graduation. Then she asked the alumni office to record these answers electronically for students to refer to in the years ahead.

 

In conclusion, she assured them of her faith in their readiness for professional life.