This article was first featured in our exclusive digital magazine, Rabie on the Go, July 2023 edition.

Read the full Rabie on the Go here:  ROTG July 2023

Asanele Tamsanqa

MRSAF Student 2022

Chosen out of 60 applicants from Sinenjongo High School, Asanele was one of the four top academic students in 2021 and is currently in her second year, studying BPharm at the University of the Western Cape.

She was chosen as a very worthy candidate for the MRSAF student, and we have enjoyed the journey with Asanele. “This year has been nothing but a blessing. I met amazing people and explored new places. At school we were given a project of giving back to the community which is one of the things I enjoyed the most because I believe that blessed is the hand that gives. We went to Durbanville Community Day Centre, where we were doing TB and cardiovascular screening, helping the community know their status so they can get help if needed and voluntarily helping doctors and nurses with patients.

Another thing that I found interesting this year is that we were doing a lot of laboratory work that involves pharmaceutical dosage form design and we made medication for fever and skin conditions. During this upcoming holiday, I am going to be doing an externship at a retail pharmacy. I am so excited, I can’t wait to learn more about the field of pharmacy while gaining experience about the work. It is my wish to also observe how other pharmacists conduct their work.

I am still driven by my dream of owning my own pharmacy and now I am even open to more opportunities as I have gained knowledge about the different types of pharmacies that one can own. I now enjoy lab work and in the future, I can invent a medication and open a manufacturing industry. Who knows? The sky is the limit. I believe “optimism is a strategy for making a better future”.

Zintle Majwede

MRSAF Student 2023

First in class in 2022 with an average of 90%, Zintle Majwede, achieved six out of seven distinctions, missing a seventh by one percentage in Computer Applications Technology (CAT). Zintle’s favourite subjects are Mathematics and Science, for which she achieved 96% and 97% respectively.

Zintle is currently a first-year BPharm student at the University of the Western Cape. “My name is Zintle Agness Majwede, and although I’ve moved to the Western Cape, I’m originally from the Eastern Cape. I am an 18-year-old first-year pharmacy student. The first semester of university was amusing but also difficult for me because I had to adjust to my new environment and create a plan to try to manage everything, including doing housework like cooking and cleaning while maintaining my academic progress. But all things considered, things went fairly well.

I envision myself as Dr. Z.A. Majwede in the future, and I will get that title by earning a PhD. I wish to own a pharmaceutical company and at least 9 pharmacies, one in each province. Although pharmacy is a difficult profession, I’m motivated to pursue it and contribute to the search for a treatment for fatal diseases. My passion is to succeed in life so that I may transform my family’s situation. I wish to improve my living circumstances and live a fulfilling life. One of the things that drew me to pharmacy was the ability of pharmacists to help people manage their conditions, treat their illnesses, or even prevent sickness through the use of medications.”

What is the Maggie Rowley Sinenjongo Assistance Fund?

Maggie Rowley, journalist by trade and communications and marketing manager for the Century City precinct from August 1997, touched the lives of many, in ways unimaginable.  She was with Rabie Property Group from July 2004, simultaneously working for Century City Property Owners’ Association and Ratanga Junction.  Maggie was much loved by her colleagues and highly regarded in media circles, also serving as regional committee member of the South African Property Owners’ Association.

With robust energy, love, and passion, she was instrumental in the metamorphosis of Sinenjongo High School in Joe Slovo Park, Milnerton.  Rabie adopted the school as the main beneficiary of its corporate social investment programme in 2007, a large portion of its ongoing sponsorship being the employment of additional teachers.  Within three years, the matric pass rate soared from 27% in 2008 to 98% in 2020, with Maggie being the empathic driving force and “Mother” of young lives that are being transformed.

Maggie tragically passed away at the age of 61 on 1 January 2019, which left a chasm in Rabie, Century City and Sinenjongo High School.

In remembrance of Maggie and the tremendous impact she made during her lifetime, as well as continuing the legacy of the burning passion she had for uplifting the youngsters of Sinenjongo High School, Rabie has launched the Maggie Rowley Sinenjongo Assistance Fund (MRSAF).  Students in the past were chosen entirely on their academic performance and our CEO or directors would assist these students in their private capacities up to graduation and beyond.  We felt that it has become necessary to not only formalise this process, but also to do so in Maggie’s honour.

The aim of the MRSAF is to ease the transition from high school to university and to take care of the things which are often neglected or not even considered.  It is stressful for a student to realise that beyond University acceptance and studies paid for through the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS), there are everyday needs that have to be met and additional expenses that accumulate.  While the student still applies for and receives funding for their education through NSFAS, the MRSAF will take care of items such as bedding, basic appliances, clothing, data, airtime and a computer.  In addition, the MRSAF candidate will receive support from Rabie in terms of registration at the University, assistance with getting settled in the dorm and further guidance in terms of tutors and study guides if necessary.

The MRSAF will be awarded annually, and each recipient will be supported throughout his or her university career, which means that by year four, there will be as many beneficiaries supported by the Trust.

Philanthropists and donors are welcome to contribute towards the MRSAF and a Section 18A certificate will be issued. Please get in touch through info@rabie.co.za for more information.