Six buses carrying mourners departed the small town of Schweizer-Reneke in the North West for Johannesburg in the early hours of yesterday morning.
The travellers on board were all determined to wave a last goodbye to a man dedicated to his birthplace.
And for those left behind in the farming community, everything came to a standstill as a sign of their last respects for Struggle icon Ahmed Kathrada.
Yesterday, as Kathrada was buried at West Park Cemetery, many residents in his birthplace were glued to the television. Kathrada was born on the farm called London, about 25km outside Schweizer-Reneke in 1929. He left the town aged eight, to start school.
Residents described him as an inspirational man who wanted to see all races united. Rosy Mokoduwe, 47, a domestic worker at Kathrada's nephew Forid's house, counted her blessings for having met him. She last saw Uncle Kathy, as Kathrada was fondly known, in January when she prepared a meal for him. "We sang for him and he went to rest, he was feeling sick that day."
Mokoduwe said she was honoured to have met "such a humble person".
She said Kathrada had encouraged her to make sure that her children went to school and got educated.
Maria Pokomosi, 63, a resident in the Kathrada section of Ipelegeng township, said she cried after hearing of his death on radio. She said Kathrada had visited her house in 2011 during a memorial lecture because that was where ANC members held secret meetings in 1989.
Pokomosi's son Patrick said Kathrada told him and other young people that he always remembered that Schweizer-Reneke was his birthplace.
"I learnt to respect other people's culture. He did not judge people according to their skin colour," he said.
At Reabetswe Secondary School, Grade 12 pupil Eva Setsibe said she liked some of his quotes. "He said 'freedom does not fall from the sky, we fought, sweated, even hurt for our freedom'." She said from that quote, she learnt she must not give up in life.
Small town mourns its stalwart son
Six buses carrying mourners departed the small town of Schweizer-Reneke in the North West for Johannesburg in the early hours of yesterday morning.
The travellers on board were all determined to wave a last goodbye to a man dedicated to his birthplace.
And for those left behind in the farming community, everything came to a standstill as a sign of their last respects for Struggle icon Ahmed Kathrada.
Yesterday, as Kathrada was buried at West Park Cemetery, many residents in his birthplace were glued to the television. Kathrada was born on the farm called London, about 25km outside Schweizer-Reneke in 1929. He left the town aged eight, to start school.
Residents described him as an inspirational man who wanted to see all races united. Rosy Mokoduwe, 47, a domestic worker at Kathrada's nephew Forid's house, counted her blessings for having met him. She last saw Uncle Kathy, as Kathrada was fondly known, in January when she prepared a meal for him. "We sang for him and he went to rest, he was feeling sick that day."
Mokoduwe said she was honoured to have met "such a humble person".
She said Kathrada had encouraged her to make sure that her children went to school and got educated.
Maria Pokomosi, 63, a resident in the Kathrada section of Ipelegeng township, said she cried after hearing of his death on radio. She said Kathrada had visited her house in 2011 during a memorial lecture because that was where ANC members held secret meetings in 1989.
Pokomosi's son Patrick said Kathrada told him and other young people that he always remembered that Schweizer-Reneke was his birthplace.
"I learnt to respect other people's culture. He did not judge people according to their skin colour," he said.
At Reabetswe Secondary School, Grade 12 pupil Eva Setsibe said she liked some of his quotes. "He said 'freedom does not fall from the sky, we fought, sweated, even hurt for our freedom'." She said from that quote, she learnt she must not give up in life.