Publications
Partners
Twenty-two-year-old Sibongiseni Nkosi is proudly earning his keep as a petrol attendant after one act of kindness landed him the job.
Nkosi helped motorist Vic Campher push his broken down car three weeks ago - something Nkosi never thought would turn his life around.
Campher, whose hobby involves classic cars, told News24 he was driving his old Jaguar down Kingsway Avenue, Johannesburg, when it broke down and he was stuck.
"It was 18:30 and getting dark. I was worried about how to get back but then Tom, which is Sibongiseni's street name, came running along and started helping me."
Campher said they had to push the car back to the Volvo dealership where he is a managing director.
Motorists were surprised to find Sibongiseni Nkosi filling up tanks at an Engen garage in Johannesburg as most remembered him asking for money at the nearby set of robots. (Chanté Schatz, News24)
"I didn't think he would give me a job as a petrol attendant, I thought I would sweep the yard or something, not this," Nkosi said as he was filling a motorist's tank.
Nkosi, who lived on the streets for more than three years, said he was grateful that he no longer had to deal with the hardships of being homeless.
"It was tough. In winter, if I left my blanket somewhere, when I got back someone would've already taken it from me."
"I'm just happy that I am getting my complexion back again because the sun is so bad when you are in the streets," he said.
READ: Former beggar's kind act to help motorist whose car broke down lands him a job
As a recovering drug addict, Nkosi told News24 that he wanted to build a new life for himself by going back to school.
"I feel very lucky that I was able to get a job without finishing school. However, I would be very happy to get assistance to finish my schooling career and keep my job."
He said that once done, he would like to study to become a lawyer or a mechanical engineer.
After just three weeks on the job, Nkosi excelled to such an extent that Campher told him to remove his trainee bib on Friday.
"He has learnt so fast in these last few weeks, I have no doubt that he will be just fine," said Campher.
