The Man Who Dared to Dream

The doctor who was accepted to the renowned Oxford University proves that greatness can come from anyone, you just need to believe!

If you can dream it, you can do it. Dr Vuyane Mhlomi is living proof of this! Growing up in the Mother City’s biggest township (Khayelitsha) where opportunities for young people are few and far between, the odds were stacked against Vuyane from the start. But this dynamic and resilient young man dared to dream, and had the vision to see both the light and his potential through the hardships.

From an early age the now Dr Mhlomi understood the real meaning of platitudes like “never hope for it more than you work for it” and “my current situation will not be my final destination”. He never allowed his financial situation and the environment he grew up in to deter him from working for what he wanted in life.

Losing his father and being raised by a single mother who was very sickly (she also suffered a stroke in his matric year), as well as being the fourth child in a family of 10 children, Vuyane knew many trials as a young person. But he used these to push him to the next level. He did what so many young people in calamitous situations should do – he exchanged “I can’t do it” for “I will do it”.

Dr Mhlomi held onto the belief that things can and will get better if he works for it. It took patience, courage and lots of hard work but he made it. He graduated from the University of Cape Town with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degree (MBChB) in 2011.

Not only did he make it, but Dr Mhlomi graduated third in his class of 171 students. He also received the Dr Helen Brown Award for the second-best final year student in clinical medicine! After graduating he completed his residency at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto. In 2013, he was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship and the Young Leaders Award from the South African Medical Association and Bonita’s House Call, and that was just the start!

Together with fellow young professionals, Dr Mhlomi founded the MH Foundation, an organisation which equips promising learners from various disadvantaged backgrounds with the resources necessary to succeed academically and socially. Resources that otherwise would be close to impossible for them to access because of their deprived environment, to help them become whatever they dared to dream of becoming.

From the surgery to the stage, Dr Mhlomi is also an actor and an award-winning director and playwright.  

Dr Mhlomi is now doing his PhD (DPhil) in Cardiology at the world-renowned Oxford University in the UK, thanks to another scholarship. He has certainly found his feet at Oxford where he is also the Junior Dean at New College, a constituent college of Oxford University. It seems there is nothing this young man can't accomplish when he sets his mind to it.

This doctor/actor/playwright/social visionary is an inspiring example that nothing can stop someone who is determined to be successful and follow their dreams.

It is now with great pleasure and privilege that we give Dr Vuyane Mhlomi the title of CapeTownMagHero!

Article written by Shannon Fortune.

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For holiday makers, instead of doing the norm of seeing the castle, book a Township Tour and experience the all the awesomeness that is the Mother City. If you were intrigued by the tour and don't want it to end just yet, then Lungi's B&B in Khayelitsha is the perfect place to over night and receive excellent hospitality.

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ABOUT #CapeTownMagHero:

#CapeTownMagHero is a new CapeTownMagazine.com project that tells of ordinary people doing extraordinary things. The Mother City’s diverse people are what make our city great! We honour those who use their time to make other lives more pleasant by bringing you the story. Do you know a #CapeTownMagHero? Email your suggestions to news@capetownmagazine.com. You can follow #CapeTownMagHeroes on Twitter and Facebook and subscribe to our newsletter to track recent stories.