Foreword (by Thabang Skwambane)
Safari njema marafiki zangu[1] (Safe travels my friends)
There are people who say what they’re going to do. There are people who try to do what they say. Then there are the select few who actually do what they say. The story you’re about to read has come about because two young men do what they say.
It will leave you inspired, excited, scared and most definitely moved.
I first met Warren in 2009 when I gave a talk to a Grade 11 class at Bishops (Diocesan College School for Boys) in Cape Town. Warren introduced himself afterwards, but neither of us knew then how that meeting would lead to this incredible journey.
Years later, when in 2017, Tom and Warren declared their intention to embark on this quest as a way to raise funds for the then The Lonely Road Foundation (now Aluwani), I decided to test their commitment. I challenged both men to commit to working for the Foundation for six months. I wanted them to understand what we do. True to their word, they joined Aluwani in Johannesburg. I haven’t doubted their word since.
Tom and Warren were inspired to take up the challenge after hearing how, many years ago, my life was profoundly transformed. I’d been blessed with many great privileges. The privilege of being raised by both my parents. The privilege of an education. The privilege of health. The privilege of means. The privilege of a network of contacts, associates, friends and family that all have extraordinary means and many more other privileges. But the sight of a 22-month old baby girl, whose circumstances had forced her into having to fend for herself, awoke in me the realization that I had an obligation to use my privilege for good.
It was June 2007, ten years before Tom and Warren started their walk, when I set out on a bicycle journey, alone and unsupported, across Africa. I called my journey the Lonely Road Challenge. The bicycle trip was a time of trepidation, fear and true solitude and I was forced to come to terms with hunger, deprivation and physical pain, as well as the fact that the challenge was my choice, made as an act of conscience.
But I was unprepared for the desperation, the emotional turmoil and in particular, the loneliness. And yet, in riding alone, I found myself.
The journey made me understand what needed to be done, how I could give my privilege purpose and how to use it for good. It made me see who I needed to be to make it happen.
Only after finding myself, did I find others to share my journey. It spurred me to start The Lonely Road Foundation, which in turn inspired hundreds of others to join me on a life journey of purpose. Today, the little girl who so greatly changed me is no longer with us, but her ingenuity and determination are very much part of our organization’s heritage.
In the last decade, hundreds of passionate people have given themselves to Aluwani. It’s this generosity of spirit that has kept us going for so long. As on my Lonely Road Challenge (and on Warren and Tom’s walk), giving up was never an option. The hardships we experienced were only temporary sacrifices, but what the children of Ga-Dikgale and many other communities around the world experience, is their daily lived experience. Maybe, just maybe, we can walk an important part of their lives with them and make their journeys a little lighter.
Tom and Warren might seem as if they come from similar circumstances, but they’re from vastly different backgrounds. What they share are the same values. These men are both humble, thoughtful, determined, courageous and possess a wealth of integrity.
It’s these values that brought them together as friends. It’s what held them together through this astonishing experience and it’s what will see them through a lifetime of friendship ahead. They’ve had the courage to take a perspective on privilege and to truly explore the meaning of giving with passion, intent and purpose.
Walk With Us is an invitation. As you read this book, you choose to walk with Tom and Warren and in so doing, you choose to explore your own path of privilege, regardless of your race, colour or creed. Ask yourself: who do you want to be? How do you want to be remembered? What have you done that is greater than you?
This story is about being true to your word. It’s an invitation to reconsider aspects of your own life, a choice whether to embark on your own journey of introspection, self-reflection and a search for purpose. You can either enjoy it as an entertaining adventure story or you can use your privilege for good.
Turn the next page and begin this walk with Tom and Warren.
Safari njema marafiki zangu (safe travels my friends),
Thabang Skwambane
[1] Saying in Swahili or Kiswahili, the lingua franca of eastern and south-eastern Africa. It’s the third most-spoken language in Africa.
