A student has cleared her debt through a Mandela Day fundraiser.
It took just one hour for a University of Johannesburg student to clear her student debt of over R40 000 through a Mandela Day fundraiser on Saturday, July 18.
Tolo Mosa Lorraine, 27, who is in her final year of Quality Engineering, needed to settle her debt in order to graduate next year.
In the spirit of Mandela Day and the call to give 67 minutes to a good cause, Lorraine turned to 650 members of a Facebook group to contribute just R67 each to her fees.
The Brown Sense Facebook page is a platform that connects black-owned businesses with an audience keen on goods and services from black-owned businesses. Its members reacted immediately and Lorraine was able to reach her target within an hour.
Lorraine said, “I actually saw someone do the same thing in 2017, and thought that one day I would gather enough strength to do the same.” 
“After making a few calculations, I realised that I could use Mandela Day to my advantage. So, I asked for 650 people to pay R67 directly into my student account not my personal account,” she said.
“There was a moment where I wanted to trash this entire year, because I did not know how I was going to pay for it. It felt like the forces of the universe were against me, then this miracle happened. I was so excited that I couldn’t even eat. Some people even donated R2 000 to R3 000, and I may even have enough money in my student account for registration next year,” Lorraine told Wits Vuvuzela.
Mzuzukile Soni, 42, founder and CEO of Brown Sense, said, “It was quite brave of her (Lorraine), to put herself out there like that. Her initiative and the results fit into the principles upon which Brown Sense is built; umuntu ngumntu ngabantu.”
FEATURED IMAGE: Tolo Mosa Lorraine raised enough money within an hour to cover her outstanding university fees. Photo: Provided.
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