A man who laboured like a slave to see that his children received the best education was hailed as a champion at his funeral. Pastor Harry Mafangambiti Netshitavhadulu Khomola (114) of Miluwani in Sibasa was laid to rest at the Mbaleni cemetery after a service held at Makwarela Community Hall on Saturday. He passed away on July 7.

He went from an illiterate country boy to a determined entrepreneur who, out of scones and vetkoek, managed to raise a big family and made sure his 11 children received a decent education, which was no mean feat at the time.

Small wonder his family eulogized him as a champion who never tired of making sure that they got the best. His funeral service turned festive and was a celebration of a life lived to the fullest.

Pastor Livhuwani Khomola, his seventh-born, is also a pastor and is following his father’s example. He told those gathered that he had mixed feelings about the death of his father. “I do not know which tears to shed, tears of sadness for the loss of a loving father or tears of joy to celebrate his life, which we all know he lived to the fullest,” he said.

Livhuwani said his father was faced with a big challenge of feeding all 11 children and also taking them to school. “Despite the challenges he had, he never grumbled, but was always smiling. He laboured and toiled for us; he was a hard worker who made skeptics of the day eat humble pie,” he said. He said despite his busy schedule of looking after his business, he was never short of time to be with his children. “He would call all of us to the fire and narrate stories every night. Life will never be the same without him,” he said. He said his father was a prayer warrior who taught them to put prayer first in whatever they did, so that they could succeed in their endeavours. “Every night he would leave us for some time and go to the nearest bush for some prayer, I saw him do this for all the years we had been together,” he said. He said he saw the fruits of prayer at work as, against all odds, the family managed to rise and they all succeeded. “This is the first death the family has experienced and this goes to show how far the Lord had preserved us through the prayers of our father,” he said. “He went through many scars but we thank God that he persevered in order that we succeed. We have many good memories of him. He was a good man who lived life to the fullest and we will always remember him,” he said.

Grandchild Lucky Lutshima, a successful businessperson in his own right, said his grandfather had instilled the business spirit in them. “We saw him conducting his business with precision and we learnt a lot from him,” he said. He said out of the 11 children, nine have successful businesses and eight of his grandchildren are in business. “We will never forget what he had done for us; he was a real champion,” he said.

On behalf of all pastors, Pastor Ananias Makhari saluted the elderly pastor for selflessly and tirelessly serving the Lord until his last day. “Pastor Khomola was dedicated to God; he always shared new revelations with other pastors. He would not hesitate to share the word of God with any passing person at the then Sibasa shopping complex. We will always remember his good leadership and works,” he said.

Khomola was born on born on May 5, 1895, as the only son of the late Muti Netshitavhadulu Rambelani Ngogeli, who also had two daughters. He might not have gone far at school after only passing standard five, but his children are all well educated. He married Junior Mukondeleli Mufamadi and they had eleven children. He later worked in Duiwelskloof, Louis Trichardt and Pretoria before coming back home for his evangelical and pastoral duties, though continuing with rearing traditional poultry for sale in Pretoria. He developed a unique way of making homemade confectionery and continued baking scones, which became the pillar to sustain family. He also started a restaurant at Mphego village outside Sibasa.

His funeral was characterized by the beating of the Zionist drums and dancing. The well-known Pastor Simon Mabogo of Healing Ministry Church (HMC) conducted the service.