The support pouring in for the family of late Munghana Lonene FM presenter Tiveka Foster “Mafosi-Try by Force” Chauke has reached R49,100 in about 24 hours and the fundraising is still growing.
More than 30 businessmen, professionals, social figures and community members have dug into their pockets to help honour the popular broadcaster, who died in a car accident last week.
The campaign has brought together people from different walks of life, with a minimum contribution of R500 per person, as friends and associates rally behind Mafosi’s family ahead of his funeral.
Businessman Howard Mashaba made the biggest individual contribution, donating R10,000.
Mayengani wa Triple Story Baloyi contributed R3,100, while Khalanga Production donated R4,000.
Prof HL Makhubela and Dr President Patric Mutsenga each contributed R3,000, while Ntwanano Mhlanga donated R2,000 and Dr S Mawila contributed R1,500.
Other contributors have given between R500 and R1,000, steadily pushing the fundraising total higher.
But Mashaba said the initiative was never launched because Mafosi’s family could not afford to bury him.
Instead, he said, those who knew Mafosi felt compelled to come together and give him a farewell befitting someone who had touched their lives.
“We created this fundraising WhatsApp group not because the family was unable to bury their loved one, but because we saw it as very important to say goodbye to the deceased in the way we could, because he was a very good person,” Mashaba said.
Mashaba said the money would ultimately be handed to the family to help cover any outstanding funeral expenses.
“We are contributing money and will give it to the family to cover the gaps. But the group was created without the knowledge of the family. They don’t know that there is a group created to help them,” he said.
The fundraising has offered a glimpse of the reach Mafosi had beyond the microphone.
Before joining SABC’s Munghana Lonene FM, where he became known to listeners through Timintsu Ta Xitsonga, Chauke also spent several years at Giyani Community Radio and Vision FM.
His sudden death has sent shockwaves through the Xitsonga-speaking community, leaving colleagues, friends, listeners and those who worked alongside him mourning the loss of a familiar voice.
For those behind the fundraising drive, however, the growing figure is about more than money.
It is a collective gesture from people determined to stand beside Mafosi’s family and ensure that his final journey is marked by the same sense of community and connection that characterised his life.
Mashaba said the fundraising will close on Tuesday, after which the money collected will be transferred to the family.
Further details about his funeral are expected to be announced by the family soon.
