The Independent on Saturday teamed up with the Denis Hurley Centre's Street Lit Project for Mandela Day. Picture: Shelley Kjonstad
It has not been an easy week for Independent Media.
In the middle of a restructure which will hopefully return us to profitability, we lost a colleague, photographer Bongani Mbatha, gunned down at his home in Hammarsdale.
I didn’t know Bongani very well, but the keen loss expressed by those who did speak of a man who was not only a good photographer, but a kind soul with a wicked sense of humour.
Also suffering an unfortunate loss was the Street Lit project, who lost vendor David van der Westhuizen on Mandela Day, ironically while IOS staff were delivering a bunch of books collected for them to sell.
And we mourn the death of Dr Anshu Padayachee, who held various civil and academic positions but is probably most remembered as the co-founder of the Advice Desk for the Abused, which does incredible work in that field.
While I was pleased with the results of our Mandela Day effort (opposite page), on the same page is a remarkable story of an unknown good Samaritan who paid for extensive renovations to a flat in a neglected building occupied by a Durban woman.
And there were probably thousands of other similar acts of goodness taking place around the country that day, all in memory of our dear departed president.
While they all help, it would be even more helpful if such efforts could be sustained, hence my appeal to readers to keep donations of second-hand books coming.
The Independence on Saturday