Kevin Onrust on his pride at being associated with UCT

Kevin Onrust, campus cleaner at the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Faculty of Health Sciences, feels energised by his job and has tapped effectively into the opportunities and exposure UCT affords.

“Bonjour, mademoiselle/monsieur” is the classic greeting one hears from Kevin Onrust, campus cleaner at UCT’s Faculty of Health Sciences campus in Observatory. Born and raised in Factreton, Cape Town, this cheerful face has been a strand in the UCT fabric since 2011 and makes his admiration for his employer clear from the very beginning.

“Here at the university, I can go home every day with a smile after facing many challenges.”

From 2011 to 2019, Kevin worked in the storeroom on UCT’s Upper Campus. Following a one-year hiatus in 2019, he joined the Faculty of Health Sciences in 2020. It was then that he was afforded the privilege of welcoming students back after the Covid-19 disruptions. He says it was a great learning experience as he had not interacted with students before.

Kevin is an early riser and takes a 04:50 bus from his home in Mitchell’s Plain every day and commences his duties at 07:00, with his day ending at 16:00. His responsibilities include setting up classroom venues – as well as two laboratories – and he often finds himself assisting visitors with directions. Year highlights for him are the preparations for special events such as the historic orientation week for first-year students, the Student Wellness Day in autumn, the annual UCT Open Day, and the annual career fair for students.

During his time in the Faculty of Health Sciences, he has been exposed to several disciplines through the preparation of venues for courses. These include disaster management, lab assistant management and information technology. He has also learnt a great deal about chemical mixtures and casts his mind back to the fact that he never knew that water or chemicals could be weighed on a scale.

Language is something that resonates with Kevin, and he has had the rare opportunity to master his language skills at work. When he was working for the City of Cape Town before 2011, his colleagues were mostly isiXhosa-speaking. In order to forge stronger connections with them, he dedicated time to learning his colleagues’ languages. When he arrived at UCT, he upgraded his isiXhosa to the level of fluency.

He jokingly adds, “I speak a little bit of Zulu too, so you can’t misguide [sic] me now.”

When he worked on upper campus, he encountered a French student who was often in the Beattie Building (where UCT’s School of Languages and Literatures is situated). He admired the student and engaged with them several times. The French speaker, impressed by Kevin’s enthusiasm, offered him a few lessons. Under this tutelage, Kevin would ask many questions and found fulfilment in his mind being challenged.

And what of being a parent and a provider? His youngest child, 19, is currently studying human resources at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) and he feels empowered in being able to support her. By working overtime, he was able to gift her a laptop for her studies.

“You need to make your life interesting,” he remarks. He reflects on how he spent five years working in the army and that every day he felt vulnerable and that his life could be cut short. He decided to part ways with the army, believing that the time was ripe to explore a new professional direction. His next place of employment was the City of Cape Town, to which he dedicated several years of his life. Following that tenure, he progressed to UCT.

When he came to work at the Faculty of Health Sciences campus, he noticed that it had a harmonious atmosphere, enabling him to engage fully with his environment and interact with people authentically. He believes himself to be more than fortunate to be part of the UCT story.