Monaheng Mrwetyana is pushing his body to the limit again, tackling a gruelling 850km bicycle ride to raise much-needed funds for education in the Komani area.
The Engen employee pulled on his lycra togs yesterday (April 13), to set off from the Life Hospital in Suikerbosrand to complete the 1965 Ride for a second time.
A man with a penchant for ultra-endurance sport, Mrwetyana has completed three Comrades and four Two Oceans Marathons and took up cycling during the COVID-19 lockdown to keep active.
“I also realised that cycling opened up opportunities for me to raise funds for the less fortunate,” said Mrwetyana.
“I wanted to help and contribute in some way as I’m passionate about giving back.”
The 1965 Ride is a demanding nine-day cycling challenge from Johannesburg to Komani.
Traversing 850km of beautiful South African landscape, participants ride it in the name of education and raising funds for scholarships and bursaries.
“The aim of the 1965 Ride is to transform education in the Komani area by improving the quality of learning and teaching and providing talented young learners with the opportunity of a lifetime – a good education,” said Mrwetyana, who grew up in Mount Fletcher. Mrwetyana applied for support through Engen’s Employee Community Partnership Programme (ECPP), which aims to create meaningful upliftment partnerships between Engen employees and their immediate communities.
The Education Endowment Fund, custodian of all money raised by the 1965 Ride, was eligible for a R5 000 ECPP grant from Engen, which will be used for learner bursaries in the Komani area.
“The route out of poverty and inequality is a quality education so by helping to send deserving young people to an excellent school we are giving them the opportunity to receive a quality education, and thus provide them with the chance of a lifetime, and hope to their community,” said Mrwetyana.
“I am more motivated than ever after witnessing the relief that last year’s bursaries brought to young learners.”
Engen commended Mrwetyana for showing commitment and playing a leading role to make a difference, said the company’s general manager for human resources, Ivershini Reddy.
“By participating in the 1965 Ride, Mrwetyana’s efforts are helping to uplift the community,” said Reddy.
“This is the very aim of the Employee Community Partnership Programme, which seeks to create meaningful partnerships between Engen employees who are involved in community upliftment initiatives, and their local communities, and thereby further foster a caring company ethos,” Reddy added.
Engen is also a long-time supporter of education through its Engen Maths and Science Schools (EMSS), which seek to address South Africa’s key skills shortages in the engineering and technical fields, thereby contributing to the economic growth and transformation of the country.
The EMSS programme offers additional maths, science and English tuition every Saturday to under-privileged learners from grades 10-12 at nine centres across South Africa, including three in the Eastern Cape in East London, Gqeberha and Cala.
Operating for over 30 years, the EMSSs measure of success is an annual matric class that consistently surpasses the national average of successful learners and learners who matriculate with a bachelor’s pass.
As a caring company, Engen commends Mrwetyana for showing heart and playing his part in making a difference to the youth of the Komani community.
