Nelson Mandela's bodyguard inspires Torbay students

It was the day Nelson Mandela’s bodyguard came to a Torbay secondary school. And it was a day the school, its staff and pupils will never forget.

In his Principal’s Blog, Steve Margetts, head of Torquay Academy explains why Chris Lubbe’s visit will stay with the students of Torquay Academy for the rest of their lives.  

Mr Lubbe was fulfilling a promise he made to one of the world’s famous leaders before he died to spread the powerful messages of tolerance, peace and forgiveness to young people across the world.  

This is his continuing mission, and we were privileged to be part of that.”

Mr Lubbe’s talk was truly inspirational and gave our young people an insight and understanding into not only the evils and injustice of apartheid, but also the powerful message of forgiveness and hope which sprang from Nelson Mandela’s presidency.”

Mr Lubbe began his talk by dropping a few names of the ‘minor’ celebrities he met whilst working for Mr Mandela: Beyoncé, JZ, Chris Martin, Matt Damon. Too many to mention, but he certainly gained the audience’s attention.

He went on to talk powerfully about his childhood growing up in a shanty town with no electricity, no running water, and ‘no hope’. 

He was taught in a classroom with no books in a class of 60 to one teacher, learning to read and having to search through rubbish dumps to find books, which he cleaned up and treasured. 

Teachers and students who also loved reading found it incredibly moving to hear of the lengths he went to in order to find what we take for granted is freely available in our libraries. 

The first book he found was Romeo and Juliet which our young people study in year 7.

He went on to talk about his experiences of apartheid; stories of injustice, violence, discrimination and hopelessness.  

You could hear a pin drop as our students absorbed these horrifying events, and clearly drew parallels with their own privileged life of freedom and democracy sat in a school which Mr Lubbe described as being one of the most amazing he had ever seen. 

But Mandela’s release changed everything in South Africa, and Mr Lubbe was fortunate to witness first-hand the forgiveness Mandela showed for those responsible for his 27 year long imprisonment. 

He showed a clip from the film ‘Invictus’ in which he was played by an actor who looked nothing like him. 

He worked with the writer of the film to ensure its accuracy, and confirmed that it was indeed 99.9 per cent accurate. It is an incredible film which demonstrates how Mandela united the nation.
He ended his speech with some of the lessons Mandela taught him, below is one of the ones which resonated with our girls and boys.

Chris was inundated wherever he went with students wanting to shake his hands, ask questions, take photographs and get his signature. 

Despite the fact that he spoke solidly for four hours, he was welcoming and gracious to them all, overwhelmed by their interest and respect. 

We had messages from parents following the event saying that their children came home keen to talk about their experience and learn more about the world around them.

We are keen to build on the messages Chris imparted in the coming weeks and years - an unforgettable experience that will encourage our young people to ‘be the change they want to see in the world’.