By Luyanda Mzobe
Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) 4th-year students from the departments of Marketing, Supply Chain, and Sport Management, in partnership with Virgin Active, CANSA, Heart and Stroke Foundation, Senior Citizens aerobics, and the Gauteng Department of Sport, Art, Culture and Recreation, hosted the annual senior wellness day at Danville sports grounds on Wednesday, October 7th 2026. They engaged with senior citizens who are above the age of 55, keeping them active, and engaged in various fitness activities.
photo by: Thato Mocuminyane
Senior Citizens during a warm-up session at the senior wellness and recreation day
The sport fitness studies students were applying what they have studied throughout the year which is inclusive and adaptive recreation. “We teach the students about the power of sport and recreation”, says TUT senior lecturer, Dr Pam Serra. She highlighted that they wanted to give back to the community because TUT is not only people’s university, but also the community’s university. Dr Serra explained, describing the students’ role in the success of the event, “What we wanted to do is to get the students involved with the community by organizing such events. This event was organized purely by the 4th-year sport management students, with the help of some good partners and really with their own resources, and I am super, super proud of these students”.
photo by: Thato Mocuminyane
Students at the senior wellness and recreation day in Danville
One of the present partners, Heart and Stroke Foundation, said they joined this initiative to raise awareness about heart and stroke diseases that they no longer happen only to elderly people; they also happen to younger people. Dietitian and Nutrition Science from Heart and Stroke, Shonisani Nephalama, said, “We are here to empower our elderly with health behaviour that they need to adopt to reduce the risk of heart disease as well as strokes”. She added that they were sharing information about a healthier diet and how it contributes to developing heart conditions as well as how it can increase the risk and promoting physical activity. Nephalama stressed that people must know their blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol and body mass index numbers, because if they are high
A member of the senior citizen aerobic group shared difficulties they have, in maintaining fitness and staying healthy, “The feet are sore, the back is sore, but with this at least it is keeping us active those aches are going away.” She added that she feels very good and happy about the initiative. She urged every senior citizen to join things like this, “We’ve got a club here in Danville, every Wednesday we come to the hall we do aerobics, so please seniors around Danville come and join us so that we can play together, to us it’s palying, we enjoy it”.
photo by: Thato Mocuminyane
