Students from the Food and Nutrition Consumer Sciences Department at the Durban University of Technology recently donated stationery, sport equipment and toiletries to various communities in Durban.

Postgraduate student supervisor in the Department, Professor Carin Napier, said the Department was passionate about giving and making a difference in needy communities without expecting anything in return. This also teaches students the concept of giving.

The Department’s Community Engagement Co-ordinator, Andile Mtolo, said the students divided themselves into three groups. The groups had to ask for items from shops, organisations, parents and neighbours to contribute to their projects. The first team has to get hygiene packs, the second sport equipment while the third had to get stationery.

“The hygiene packs consisted of deodorants, soaps, lip gloss, hand cream, toothpaste, toothbrushes and disposable razors for the girls of two children’s homes in Durban. The sport equipment team donated soccer, rugby and net balls, hula hoops, a netball kit, skipping ropes and juice bottles to Kenneth Gardens and the stationery team donated all basic stationery from pencils, pens, exercise books and erasers to the Kenneth Gardens children. The sport equipment and stationery was handed over to the Carrots and Peas Soup Kitchen, a non-profit organisation which will be responsible for issuing the items to the children for team sport activities at the Kenneth Gardens community,” he said.

– Nkosinathi Wanda

Pictured: Food and Nutrition Consumer Sciences Department postgraduate student supervisor, Professor Carin Napier, and Department’s Community Engagement Co-ordinator, Andile Mtolo, are pictured with the happy recipients of the hula-hoops which were donated by third-year students from the Department.