Noxolo Grootboom said she told her babies at SABC, the younger people who are her colleagues, ” she wanted a quite exit from SABC. She didn’t did not want a farewell party for her. Because she came to SABC, quietly as an unknown typist in 1983 and she want to leave that way again. She told them she was going to prepare umqhushu and tripe at her place to celebrate with them

She said she started when she was 23 and now she is 60. Her surname was Mthimkhulu and the white folks gave you something else. She said when she got to joburg she was staying with her mom and brothers in Soweto and she said her room was smaller than her bedroom at home in Transkei and she was not happy with it. And she said to her mother she needs to get out of it and get a better place for the family and she said anything that comes her way she will grab it and she said that opportunity came from SABC. SABC employed her as a typist and she was earning R97 per month and she never realised how big SABC was. She realised that it was a big institute and u she started dreaming and it can be a big window for her that can open big doors for her.

SABC had more toilets and canteen because of racial segregation of the time. She said SABC had flats had to rent for workers and were reserved for whites. And she applied as Sharon Grootboom to test the waters and when she showed up and they realised that she was black and they said to her they will keep her on the list instead of giving the keys.

But she said when she think of her retirement, it saddened her because it was linked to a sad moment at SABC when 600 staff were in tears following their retrenchment. She said it does hurt her.

Thabiso Tema said, you are easy at the eye, fleeted with her. She said she was in Venda in a mall. She heard someone saying “ndiyanithanda nonke e makhaya.”

She used to have help students with their school work at Jabulani and Yvonne was one of her students.

One of the callers on Power FM asked her, ‘what keep her young, she said there are under 18, listening to the radio and she can’t say her secret when they are listening to the radio. Which means adult stuff is the one that makes her fit.