Eric Ubisi is Londolozi’s sous chef. A quiet and humble man, Eric goes about his day with a smile on his face, his calm demeanour belying his non-stop work to keep the Londolozi dining experience running as smoothly as it does.
What most people don’t know about Eric is the truly remarkable and deeply humbling work he and his wife Merciful do away from the lodge, on their own time and out of the goodness of their hearts.
Londolozi Executive Sous Chef Eric Ubisi.
In 2008 the couple recognised the need for a school for orphaned children and they called it Shalamakane which means “wake up and see the sunrise”. Eric approached Londolozi members Debbie Kane-Berman and Jenny Watson, the CC Africa Foundation, as well as the Good Work Foundation: Kate Groch and Gogo Mo for assistance in raising money to build the school. A couple of years later in 2010, they opened a second orphanage, called Hlayisekani, one that served the needs of young handicapped children in the communities surrounding the Sabi Sand Reserve, at which extra care and facilitated learning could take place. The motivation to provide these children and young adults with care and learning came from Eric’s childhood where he was orphaned from the age of 7. His determination, along with his wife’s, have been truly inspirational. Eric’s monthly salary supports these two schools and Merciful is the principle to both schools.
Eric – Executive sous Chef
Today Hlayisekani cares for 24 young people, meeting needs that rural communities generally aren’t geared towards, such as wheelchair-friendly access. The Shalamukani pre-school, which currently looks after 65 small children, providing a safe learning environment for kids who would otherwise need to be at home with organised supervision whilst their parents are at work during the day; something that can be very hard to come by in working households.
Many of you will be familiar with the Secret Santa tradition, in which participants pick a name out of a hat and then gift a Christmas present only to that person. Well this year the Londolozi staff had a much better idea, lead by Christina Fox and Anna Ridgewell, we decided that instead of gifting to each other, we would arrange gifts for the kids at Hlanyisekani.
Executive Chef Anna Ridgewell arranged for a special Christmas meal to be sent out to the centre, and some of the Londolozi suppliers – Plaston, Matumi Fresh Produce and Matumi Distributors – were very generous in their contributions towards the event.
A few days before Christmas some of the Londolozi Staff headed out to Hlayisekani to deliver the gifts and join in the Christmas celebrations:
Eric presents one of his scholars with a Christmas present
Healing House Head Therapist: Christina Fox helps a young lady play with her newly opened present
Amanda Ritchie helps give a present to a young boy
Jess MacLarty takes a selfie with some of the children
It was truly inspiring seeing first-hand what Eric and Merciful and everyone involved with Hlayisekani Centre are doing to better the lives of so many that need help.
24 children, their 7 educators and a whole host of volunteers, parents and assorted family were all able to enjoy a beautiful Christmas celebration thanks to the amazing work started by a wonderful couple over 10 years ago. The teachers at Hlayisekane are all volunteers and so Shan and Dave arranged special gifts for each one of them. Londolozi Chef, Connie, also attended the event, where she showed the teachers how to prepare a delicious Christmas feast.
Eric will be back at Londolozi now, helping prepare amazing meals for guests from all around the world. He will be going about his day with his quiet smile, asking for not a word of recognition or thanks for the change he has brought to so many lives in his community.
I think the biggest gift of all this festive season is the inspiration we can – and should – all find in someone like him.
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Fitting final story for 2019–capturing the overall generous philosophy that permeates the Londolozi experience.
Best wishes for a satisfying 2020 to the entire staff and this blog community!
What a heart warming story. Eric and his wife are truly heroes. This “grass roots » is so much more effective than large government programs, although those are also necessary. How typical of all the people at Londolozi to turn Secret Santa into a celebration for not only the children but also to honor the wonderful work of Eric and his wife. Happy New Year to you all. Victoria
Had to wait a minute to reply to this blog James, to wipe tears away. What an amazing human being Eric is, to give back so generously to children who deserve learning opportunities, and kudos to the continued generosity of the Londolozi staff and management in supporting one another in causes near and dear to them.
This was a wonderful blog to end 2019 and I truly hope it inspires readers everywhere to consider to giving back in any way they can, either monetarily or by volunteering to a cause, charity, school in 2020 onwards. Thank you for bringing his story to life and cheers to a great new year.
Truly inspirational! What a treasure to have Eric on your staff.
What a wonderful human. Thank you for sharing.
OMG, James, what a good thing they are doing. I love the presents, and the food, and all the good they are doing!
A lovely heart-warming story! Kudos to Eric and his wife for the good work they do to help these children – and to all the Londolozi staff who contributed to the Christmas celebration!
Absolutely love this and love you all. Happy 2020! 💕
James thank you for this heartwarming blog. This is what Christmas is all about. A big shout out to Eric and his wife for doing this amazing thing for underprivileged children. Please can you let me know if they are accepting supplies and/or money in order to help them out. Wishing each and every one of you at Londolozi a safe, happy and healthy 2020. Find it hard to control my tears.
Thank you for sharing this wonderful story. My heart is full.
What a beautiful story. It is the quiet generosity to others – without expecting anything in return – that defines the true heroes in our world! We will look forward to hearing more from Eric (and eating his great food!) on our next visit!