I have a name… meet Eustance, a real South African hero!

A South African hero jumped out of a taxi to stop a thief who had stolen a strangers cellphone… his name is Eustance Maluleke and this is his story.

“I have a name” is an incredible photo series showcasing everyday South Africans in the most phenomenal way. Proudly South African… one story at a time.

The stories are told by the incredible South Africans… raw & unedited. It’s a showcase of humanness, a reminder that behind every face, is a name.

Meet Eustance, a real South African hero!

Last week I got an email from Tracy…

“On Saturday a thief stole my iPhone 5 out of my hand. I was sitting in my car waiting at a traffic light by Zandspruit, as he ran away I was sure that this was the end of my phone. When I thought about just how much of my life runs on that little device, I was truly floored!”

Eustance Maluleke was sitting in a stationary taxi nearby and heard Tracy’s cries for help.

He jumped out of the taxi, saw Tracy crying and the thief running off with her phone. Eustance left his ride behind him and sprinted after the phone thief instead.

He eventually caught up with him, tackled him to the ground and got the phone out of his hand before the guy ran off.

I met up with this real South African hero this week to hear his story.

“When I heard Tracy cry I just ran, but once I had safely gotten the phone back, the men standing around watching me said,’ You should keep it, it is your lucky day!’

“I am out of work, and an iphone is a valuable thing…but I’m a Christian and I told them, ‘That would not be right, this phone is not mine to keep. I’m going to try to find the lady who owns it’.”

“The men thought I was foolish for wanting to give the phone back.”

“Just then the phone rang and it was Tracy. I told her I had her phone and met up with her to give it back.”

Eustance is a family man – he has 2 children, a son of 9, a daughter of 3 and lives in Thembisa.

“I wrote matric in 2009. I didn’t pass all my subjects, but I still want to complete the subjects that I didn’t pass.”

“I have a code 10 and 14 with PDP drivers license, and worked for 3 years as a driver for Liquor Looneys. It was contract work through an agent and after 3 years the contract expired and I lost my job. I really love driving.”

“I obey the laws of the road, I don’t speed, and I respect my customers. I know my way around Joburg really well. I would love to get back behind the steering wheel and earn a living for my family.”

This incredible story went viral & within a couple of hours Eustance had received many job offers and has many interviews coming up next week proving that when you do good… good will come back to you.

“I Have A Name” is a space where an anonymous photographer (we’ll call her J) is taking photos of everyday South Africans to showcase their incredible stories.

How do we bridge the great South African divides? Black vs white, young vs old, rich vs poor, men vs women? The divides that keep us from making eye contact with the beggar standing on the street corner, or the stranger in the lift.

CS Lewis said, “There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub and exploit – immortal horrors or everlasting splendors. This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn. We must play. But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously – no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption.”

Come with me on a journey…the stories and names behind the faces of everyday South Africans living their life in your neighbourhood, on your streets.

I think you will discover that we have a lot in common.

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