Living with blindness has not stopped former Orlando Pirates defender Bernard “Shoes” Lushozi from following his dream to make a contribution in the education of children with special needs.
Lushozi, 57, of Mondeor, southern Johannesburg, became totally blind in 2020 due to diabetes, just a year before getting his doctorate in learning support, guidance and counselling from the University of Pretoria.
He discovered in 2001 that he was diabetic and had to make adjustments to cope with his deteriorating eyesight.
“[This is] still new. I rely on my family to help me around. I have had to go through all the stages of trauma – disbelief, denial, anger, disappointment.
“It is through this experience that I have learnt to know God, not as an acquaintance, but have a personal relationship with Him,” he said.
On Saturday, soccer legends, including Linda Buthelezi, Eugene Zwane, Tebogo Moloi, Joseph Ngake and Edward Motale gathered in Orlando West, Soweto, to celebrate Lushozi for his courage.
In the interview with Sowetan, Lushozi said he started preparing for life after football long before retirement.
In 1989, he fractured his shinbone and his then employers Moroka Swallows released him on a free transfer as they thought he would not be able to play again.
Lushozi started vocational training as a motor diesel mechanic but later he felt that it was “too much” for him.
He then got his BA degree in education from the University of Johannesburg in 1996, two years before retiring from football.
After qualifying as a teacher, he started working at Modderbee Prison in Benoni on the East Rand in 1997.
It was at this facility that he learnt that to teach people, one needs to understand people with learning disabilities.
“In prison, I discovered that not all persons that are incarcerated are criminals. For example, people with intellectual disabilities that were never identified may end up in prison. That is why I decided to focus on studying further on teaching children with special needs,” Lushozi said.
He taught in prison until December 2004.
In January 2005, he joined Albertina Sisulu Centre in Orlando West, a school for children with severe to profound intellectual disabilities, as a principal. He still works there.
As the interview with Sowetan proceeded, soccer legends took turns coming to greet Lushozi, who was sitting at a table in the dining area.
Even before they could shake his hand, he was able to identify them by listening to their voices.
In the background, old school music such as Letta Mbulu created a perfect environment for the legends to share light moments with the doctoral graduate.
The day was chilled, with meat on the braai stand and music playing in the background as the legends got into conversation about different issues.
With the crowd increasing by the minute, Lushozi somehow was able to handle the pushing and shoving of people who wanted to take a picture with him.
While Lushozi was pleased with the visit form his former teammates at Orlando Pirates and opponents at Kaizer Chiefs, he was critical of the state of these Soweto giants.
“They have stopped competing. They have found a competitor in Sundowns but unfortunately, they have stopped competing. Sundowns can be beaten. The club has limitations. Their slogan is 'the sky is the limit'. My advice to Chiefs and Pirates is that if you want to beat Sundowns, you must go beyond the sky.
“If Sundowns pay a player R1, Pirates and Chiefs must pay that player R200 because it is competition. If Sundowns are treating their players as professionals, Chiefs and Pirates have to double their efforts in doing that,” Lushozi said.
He said that modern footballers faced more challenges than his generation.
“They have a lot of disturbances. They have cellphones and find themselves on social media but are not taught how the handle the fame...”
The father of four said his dream now is to develop a curriculum for the training of educators who teach children with special needs.
“If a child has Down syndrome, the teacher must know what kind of condition is Down syndrome. The teacher must know how children with Down syndrome learn. One needs to know the children’s strength and how their brains function. My dream is to see teachers trained in this field, particularly in the township,” he said.
Zwane, a former Jomo Cosmos player, said Lushozi had to be celebrated to inspire other young soccer players to study.
“Soccer player are generally known as failures after football. It is not often that you find a soccer player achieving what Shoes has accomplished. We felt as legends, we have to celebrate him,” Zwane said.
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