Local Heroes

For 33-year-old Mandilakhe Lufundo, theatre is more than performance — it is a way to change lives. Through his nonprofit company Tears of the Creatives, founded in 2022, he uses the stage to give hope to children living with disabilities, and those from

In the heart of Reeston, a group of nurses is proving that healing a community takes more than medicine.

When a yacht sank off East London’s coast, veterinarian Peter Wood thought he was simply helping to care for a rescued dog. He did not expect to end up in a bureaucratic fight for its life.

Shaped by her late mother’s quiet generosity, Rochelle de Klerk, 63, has carried that spirit into the heart of her community one bowl of soup at a time.

Former Transvaal rugby captain Graham Noonan has traded professional stadiums for rural fields, and he is using that shift to change lives.

Nolitha Nkomana founded African Footprints of Hope in 2008 to address poverty and unemployment in the Eastern Cape, starting with support for children orphaned by HIV and Aids.

Even in his 80s, Raman Khandoo demonstrates that age is no barrier to making a difference. The retired principal spends his days supporting children, the elderly and families in need across East London, making small acts of kindness have a lasting impact

The East London International Convention Centre was filled with the sound of applause on Thursday evening as everyday people were celebrated for doing the extraordinary.

With only three weeks remaining, anticipation is building for one of the Eastern Cape’s most uplifting events — the Daily Dispatch Local Heroes Awards — taking place on November 6 to honour ordinary people accomplishing the extraordinary in service of their fellow man. Hosted at the East London International Convention Centre (EL ICC), the prestigious annual event will once again shine a spotlight on people whose compassion, resilience, and generosity have uplifted their communities.

Twelve months of community goodwill will be celebrated in November when the Daily Dispatch, in partnership with Johnson’s — a brand of Kenvue, hosts its annual Local Heroes Awards ceremony. The event, set for November 6 at the East London ICC, will see the announcement of 2025’s top 12 finalists, whose selfless contributions have made a lasting impact across the region.

Mpongo Primary in Macleantown has found a new champion in the Mizzie Zokufa Foundation, which has stepped in to boost classroom support, tackle hunger, and bring social services to the school’s pupils. Founder Nomkhitha Zokufa, 49, said she decided to start the initiative because of the difficulties faced by families in the area, where unemployment was high and many households struggled to support their children’s education.

At 58, East London resident Bernadine Norton has turned her lifelong passion of helping others into a mission through her Net ’n Bietjie Liefde soup kitchen in Egoli. Founded in 2016, the project serves more than 300 people, from babies to the elderly, twice a week, usually on Mondays and Wednesdays.

First trained guide dog Achi almost drowned when the foreign-owned yacht he was aboard sank, and then SA’s strict rules against the unauthorised importation of foreign animals nearly led to his being euthanised. But small-animal vet Pete Wood, 71, was having none of it. His determination to save Achi, an effort which ultimately required the intervention of agriculture minister John Steenhuisen, is one of the reasons Wood has been nominated for the Daily Dispatch Local Hero award.

Community activist Amanda Timms, 58, has spent decades serving the most vulnerable, from feeding the homeless and supporting disadvantaged pupils to fighting crime. In 2024, she established Safer Futures, a nonprofit organisation that provides food and support to homeless people and vulnerable children in disadvantaged communities.

Visual artist, poet and part-time actress Nozipho Mbembe, 26, founded Isingqi Sabantwana in 2015 to nurture children’s creativity and artistic skills.