Meet Linda Twala, the 76 year old 'father' of Alexandra, a township in Johannesburg, South Africa. During the pandemic and lockdowns, he's been leading the charge on the ground to get food and support to the hungry and the homeless, to the people who need it. At an age when most people are thinking about hanging up their shoes, he's been an unstoppable force, helping charities distribute over 30 tonnes of maize a week.
The headquarters for those efforts are a centre for the aged he founded in 1967. After being burned down by apartheid forces in the 1980s, he rebuilt it as a place called Phuthaditjhaba which means "the gathering and taking caring of nations". Today, it houses a daily feeding scheme for over 200 children and 150 aged people, a computer lab, a gym, library, music rooms, health services and early childhood development classes. The gate is always open, encouraging a constant stream of visitors, and inside, stacks of boxes filled with food parcels and stationery and books are scattered on tables.
He says it was his mother who taught him about the importance of sharing what little you have with others. “My mother was a domestic worker and she taught us discipline, respect and how to live with people. Even though she didn’t have much, she always gave food to the hungry and the homeless.”
