THORNHILL – When Madodana Kota lost his 16-year-old son, Lukhanyo Tshunungwa, in a devastating car accident on 3 January 2016, the grief threatened to consume his family, but from that unimaginable pain, something remarkable emerged: a community-wide movement that has touched thousands of lives and potentially saved many more.
Madodana said that before his passing, his son was quiet, a dedicated learner, well-behaved and soft-spoken.
He said that he was also enthusiastic about developing his soccer skills and played for Thornhill United Junior Football Club as one of the youngest players on the first team.
Madodana said that five children died alongside Lukhanyo on the R102 near Thornhill due to drinking and driving, and speeding, a tragedy that brought the entire community to a standstill.
“The devastating death of my son was a painful experience for my family. It was particularly painful for his grandmother, who died three months after his death. My mother and I took care of him, so the loss was very painful for us,” said Madodana.
Despite their deep-rooted grief, Madodana and his wife, Zoleka, began looking into ways they could remember their son while creating awareness in their community about the dangers of drunk driving.
“Since Lukhanyo loved soccer, we decided to host an annual soccer tournament in his memory and use the opportunity to make people aware of drinking and driving and remind people that speed kills,” said Madodana.
Finally, in 2018, the idea crystallised into action when the first Lukhanyo Memorial Tournament was held with just eight teams, and in 2019, the non-profit organisation, Lukhanyo Memorial Trust, was established.
Now in its seventh edition, the tournament has doubled in size to 16 soccer teams.
Furthermore, this year marks a significant expansion with the addition of netball to further share their drunk driving campaign with girls in the community.
Madodana said that the tournament weekend, which runs from 28 to 30 November at the Thornhill Sports Field, is carefully orchestrated to maximise both sporting excitement and educational impact.
“We start on Friday evening when the teams arrive, and the announcer explains the purpose of the tournament and why we’re having this event,” said Madodana.
“With the formal opening ceremonies on Saturday, we have speakers from different departments and role players speaking about drinking and driving and that speed kills, and also with the closing ceremony.”
The timing is intentional.
Held on the last weekend of November, the tournament coincides with the beginning of the festive season, traditionally a high-risk period for road accidents.
“The Arrive Alive campaign and the opening of the season start this weekend. The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence also starts at this time of year. With these campaigns, we believe that we are assisting the South African government to spread awareness about these issues,” said Madodana.
Thankfully, he said that the community response has been overwhelmingly positive.
“The communities are very positive about this campaign, and the attendance of people coming to watch this event has grown,” said Madodana.
Beyond awareness, the tournament provides tangible benefits to local schools.
Madodana said that the soccer balls and netball balls that are used during this event are given to local schools in the Kouga area, and with the money raised through the tournament, they plan to host a back-to-school programme early in January, when they will hand out sanitary products and school clothing.
For Madodana, the tournament represents something deeper than sport or even road safety education; it’s about community responsibility and healing.
“We need to be clear with this, it’s not the government’s role alone to spread the news, but we as community members have a role to play by educating our youth, senior citizens and children by getting involved, by supporting this event, by giving out pamphlets of road safety and educating people about drunk driving,” said Madodana.
“Drinking and driving and speeding kills future leaders and also leaves families in this time of happiness in pain.”
The Lukhanyo Memorial Soccer and Netball Speed Awareness Tournament will take place at Thornhill Sports Field from 28 to 30 November.
Entrance fees are R10 for adults, R5 for kids, and R15 per car.
For more information contact, Madodana Kota at 067 099 6289.
