A mother's heartache: Accepting a posthumous diploma for her late daughter
They say that the worst pain is a mother burying her child.
It must also be painful for a mother to attend a graduation and accept a posthumous qualification on behalf of her late daughter.
This was the painful reality for Mrs Thembisile Hlatshwayo. In an emotionally charged moment, Mrs Hlatshwayo took to the stage at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) at the weekend —not as a graduate, but as a grieving mother honouring the memory of her daughter, Sinenhlanhla Hlatshwayo.
With tears streaming down her face and unimaginable courage in her heart, Mrs Hlatshwayo accepted a posthumous Diploma in Information and Communications Technology (ICT): Applications Development on behalf of her daughter, who passed away just days after completing her final exams.
The graduation ceremony was held at the Olive Convention Centre in Durban.
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Heartbroken mom accepts daughter's posthumous diploma after mysterious death
On the day of her daughter's death, Hlatshwayo had left her with her siblings to attend an all-night church service. On her return in the morning, she found her daughter sleeping with one leg hanging off the side of the bed. Troubled by this, she went to check on her and found her 'ice cold'. 'I tried to move her but I realised she was gone. It is a day I will never forget. My only child in university was gone. She was my only hope and we were excited when she finished her studies. We were hoping she would get a job and our lives would change for the better. 'As we speak, her younger brother, who finished matric two years ago, is sitting at home. He was meant to study this year but he told me he was scared to go to university as he fears he might also come back to die. Sinenhlanhla's death is a mystery to us. We were not told what caused her death. We are finding it hard to heal,' she said. Hlatshwayo said as painful as it was to see her daughter's friends and peers graduating without her, attending the ceremony was something she had to do. 'It was the least I could do to honour my hardworking daughter, who was committed to her studies.' Hlatshwayo said it was important to take her daughter's qualification home to honour her and hopefully motivate her younger siblings to further their studies and work on improving their lives. DUT registrar Dr Maditsane Nkonoane conveyed his condolences to the family. TimesLIVE
IOL News
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A mother's poignant graduation tribute
Mrs Thembisile Hlatshwayo at her daughter's Sinenhlanhla Hlatshwayo graduation at DUT. Image: DUT/Supplied They say that the worst pain is a mother burying her child. It must also be painful for a mother to attend a graduation and accept a posthumous qualification on behalf of her late daughter. This was the painful reality for Mrs Thembisile Hlatshwayo. In an emotionally charged moment, Hlatshwayo took to the stage at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) at the weekend —not as a graduate, but as a grieving mother honouring the memory of her daughter, Sinenhlanhla Hlatshwayo. With tears streaming down her face and unimaginable courage in her heart, Hlatshwayo accepted a posthumous Diploma in Information and Communications Technology (ICT): Applications Development on behalf of her daughter, who passed away just days after completing her final exams. The graduation ceremony was held at the Olive Convention Centre in Durban. The audience stood still as DUT Registrar, Dr Maditsane Nkonoane, extended heartfelt condolences to the Hlatshwayo family. A moment of silence was also observed to honour the young woman whose dream was cut short too soon. 'She left DUT on the 7th of November after completing her final exams. She was home for seven days, seemed fine, and then… she was gone,' Mrs Hlatshwayo said quietly after the ceremony. 'She was not sick. She slept and never woke up. We still don't know what took her.' Sinenhlanhla passed away on November 14, 2024, leaving behind a devastated family and a heartbroken community in Mtubatuba, northern KwaZulu-Natal. The unexplained nature of her death continues to haunt her loved ones, with no cause yet confirmed. Hlatshwayo recounted the morning she returned home from an all-night church service, only to find her daughter cold and lifeless in bed. 'She was our hope,' she said, her voice trembling. 'She was the only one in university. We were all looking forward to the life she would build for herself and for us.' Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ What used to be a cause for celebration and hope turned into grief. Her younger son, who had been preparing to start university, is too afraid to follow in his sister's footsteps. 'He told me he's scared. Scared that he'll go and never come back, just like his sister,' said Hlatshwayo. Despite the pain, she made the brave choice to walk across that stage in her daughter's name. 'It was hard,' she said. 'But I needed to do it for her. She worked so hard. That diploma belongs to her, and it had to come home.' Cape Argus
IOL News
26-05-2025
- IOL News
A mother's heartache: Accepting a posthumous diploma for her late daughter
They say that the worst pain is a mother burying her child. It must also be painful for a mother to attend a graduation and accept a posthumous qualification on behalf of her late daughter. This was the painful reality for Mrs Thembisile Hlatshwayo. In an emotionally charged moment, Mrs Hlatshwayo took to the stage at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) at the weekend —not as a graduate, but as a grieving mother honouring the memory of her daughter, Sinenhlanhla Hlatshwayo. With tears streaming down her face and unimaginable courage in her heart, Mrs Hlatshwayo accepted a posthumous Diploma in Information and Communications Technology (ICT): Applications Development on behalf of her daughter, who passed away just days after completing her final exams. The graduation ceremony was held at the Olive Convention Centre in Durban.
