By Nontokozo Gemani
- Student Nompumelelo Sungula spends her savings on groceries to feed homeless people near an Engen garage in Tsakane Extension 1.
- Nompumelelo Sungula started the feeding scheme after her homeless uncle passed away at that same Tsakane garage spot in 2022.
Scrolla is celebrating Youth Day by sharing the stories of youth doing good across the country.
Nompumelelo Sungula is 20 years old and runs a quiet feeding initiative in Tsakane Extension 1. She spends her savings on groceries to cook meals and feed homeless people.
Sungula is a computer science student at IKwezi Computer School and a music artist. She also works at McDonald’s as a guest experience learner, where she helps customers, takes orders and handles complaints.
A single mother raised Sungula after her father died when she was six years old. She said growing up without him made her sensitive to people who are struggling.
In 2020, her uncle struggled with drug addiction and lived on the streets. She saw him at an Engen garage on her way to school and gave him food.
“One day I saw him sharing the little food I gave him with other people,” she said. “That broke my heart.”
Her uncle died in 2022. Sungula started her feeding scheme at the exact spot where she used to see him. She uses money from her allowance from her mother and stepfather.
She feeds the homeless once or twice a month. Some people accuse her of looking for attention, but she disagrees.
“I do it for God,” she said. “He is pleased with helping others.”
Sungula also donated sanitary pads to learners at Buhlebomfundo Secondary School and gave snacks to children at Luthando Crèche. She ran a food drive at the Tsakane Old Age Home twice.
She planned to return this year, but the home has been closed for over a year. She also hosts Bible picnics for young women across Tsakane for prayer and discussions about Christianity.
Sungula hopes to start a company one day to help communities with food, clothes and shoes.
“If I had funding, I would make my feeding scheme weekly,” she said.
Pictured above: Nompumelelo Sungula cooks and serves hot meals to homeless people in Tsakane.
Image source: Supplied
