Vuyo's shot at a brighter future

Sanibonani (Hello in Zulu)

My name is Vuyo, and I'm a 23 year old 2nd year student at Varsity College in Cape Town, South Africa. I have always wanted to be a University student, but it seemed the universe had another plan for me. I was not able to afford University because at the time, my father was going into a dark hole and he was unable to continue supporting me. When i finished high school at the age of 18, I immediately got myself a job and since then, I've been the driver of my life.

I moved from Johannesburg to Cape Town in the search of a happier life, and I have managed better than most so far. Unfortunately I did not have enough qualifications to be anything else but a bartender or a waitress so that is what I did. I work and I study full time, and on Sundays, I mentor at the 'DreamGirls international outreach and mentoring program', helping in the upliftment of young South African women in order for them to also have bright futures.

Sadly, being a waitress does not pay enough for me to afford College tuition but with the help of my amazing boyfriend, I am able to get by. He helps me with my tuition fees and he means the world to me but I don't think this should be his burden.
I felt a lot of pain in my heart since I left high school, watching all my friends graduate, travel and have successful jobs, all because of the help of their parents/guardians. Because I didn't have that kind of support, I thought I was going to spend all my life as a waitress. If it wasn't for my great boyfriend of over 3 years, I would probably still be stuck in that slum. I owe him my life, because he sacrifices HIS life, just so I can live my dream.

But now things have gotten really hard for me since my father had a stroke. He lives in Johannesburg by himself, and without my help, he will not be able to survive. I would love to go visit him one day, as I have not seen him in over 2 years, but travelling is an expense I cannot afford. I have almost exhausted my savings because of helping my father with all his bills, and now I'm scared that I won't be able to continue with my studies. I'm currently suffering from pulsatile tinnitus due to stress, and my GP has told me it could be dangerous if not checked out, but I am unable to visit an ENT because they are so expensive, and I would rather take care of my father first.

I cannot get a student loan because I do not have any assets, nor do I have parents with assets either, so the banks would never allow it. And my Varsity does not offer student funding. I have tried everything, believe me. I have even begged my boss of 3 years to loan me some money and he turned me down. So now all I have is FAITH. Faith that someone out there will hear me out and help me.

I reached out to my kind friend who lives in America, and she agreed to help me do this. I'm very nervous about everything because in my culture and the way I was raised, begging for money is frowned upon. But I decided to follow my heart instead, and swallow ALL my pride in order for me to reach out and admit that I'm in need of a helping hand. I just really hope that you all can see that all I want is to become a someone and create a better life for myself, in the hopes of being the voice for our youth. As everyone knows, South Africa is in desperate need of one of those, and I'm hoping my degree can get me there.

And just to break it down in Rands, my yearly tuition is R64 900 ($5 408), and I have to pay out 10 installments of R6 490 ($540) a month.
For the remainder of this year, I still owe R45 430 ($3 785). And since GoFundMe takes a portion of the donated money, I'm hoping that my goal of $10 000 will take care of the GoFundMe fees and still cover my tuition for the rest of this year, and my final year as an undergrad.

Just for reading my story, I'm eternally grateful <3