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Our hearts are filled with sorrow and sadness, a sorrow that is deep and personal, and sadness that will take time to heal. Nkosinathi Lucky Zwane, part of Container Conversions for the past 13 years, dedicated Comrades runner and a true leader, has concluded his journey, or rather his race of life, leaving a huge area and role that he had played in all our lives, empty and impossible to replenish again.

Traquita Thomas once shared his perception on “What is the value of a man”?

How do you measure a man?
Is it by strength?
Is it by Intelligence?
Or is it by fearlessness?
I feel a man should be measured by the ability to lead others down the right path.
The ability to inspire the seed of greatness in those who need encouragement.

Lucky joined the company on 2 April 2007. Many of us found him to be a splendid person of great intellect and big heart. He was always a huge positive influence in the company, exemplifying true leadership starting as a general employee and then moving upwards to a team leader, a shop steward and his recent position as a yard supervisor.

In all these positions he was always firm in fighting for progress, fairness and integrity, not only for himself but for the company and for all of his colleagues. He always maintained a striking balance without compromising or undermining the interest of both

Lucky provided the company with 13 years of remarkable service. He always had a strong belief in a culture of comrades and was consistent in applying it in the working environment. I believe this culture is influenced by his commitment and his strong love for The Marathon.

Our personal analogy of Lucky’s life that we have been privileged to be part of is that “Lucky’s life is like a marathon”.

Everyone who knew Lucky knew how much he loved running The Marathon, and so we felt this poem was a fitting tribute to a dedicated marathon runner:

“Life is like a marathon” [the author is unknown]

Life is like a marathon, That we cannot reject, We must run
It’s a continuous route that we travel on
At some points the path is tough, sometimes it’s fun

Even though the track is lengthy
We don’t have to do it alone
By your side, I’m fierce and I’m frail
With you I can navigate through the unknown

In this race, we may stumble
We are likely to collapse or trip
In this marathon we learn to get back up
And fight furiously through every dip

This road is extensive and coarse
But we must battle forward
Striding past every obstacle
And looking past the pain onward

So run this race to your utmost ability
Give everything that you got
Because at the precious finish line
People will remember how hard you fought

Lucky ran almost every day to work, then paced up and down the company yard to get the production going, and in the afternoon ran back home again. Always preparing for the next Marathon…

The marathon stands for endurance, it stands for staying down, being disciplined and consistency in training, preparing for the races of life ahead. Lucky applied the marathon concept in everything that he did at work.

All of us can learn from Lucky, and apply the marathon concept to our everyday life, whether we are in sports, music, fashion or business. We are all in the marathon.

To the Zwane family members, our hearts and prayers are with you at this most difficult time.

We will all miss you Lucky, may your soul rest eternally in peace.

Nkosinathi Lucky Zwane
20 September 1982 – 6 September 2020