Thousands of mourners from around the province attended the funeral service of the former radio guru, Dryskin "Mukumba Thipetwi" Sono (76), which was held at the Waterval Evangelical Lutheran Church of South Africa (ELCSA) on Saturday, 15 April. Sono passed away at his home in Waterval on 11 April, following a short illness.
Mourners burst into laughter as speaker after speaker remembered how Sono had lived. Mr Mpho "Juntiby" Nefale, veteran radio presenter and former colleague of Sono at Phalaphala FM, said Sono had been a remarkable presenter, who could capture ordinary things in an unusual manner. "Sono did his work diligently and not for the love of monetary rewards. It is rare to find people of Sono's calibre with such a work passion," he said.
Nefale said that the family and community members around Limpopo were still shocked about Sono's death. "We are greatly saddened about Sono's untimely death. Our province has been robbed of a committed and hard worker and we shall miss him. He played a vital role in the development of the radio industry by grooming young presenters. He was an icon of hope, a role model and a true leader who displayed distinguished leadership skills in his society."
Pastor Stanley Mabuza of ELCSA urged the church's members to emulate the good example set by the late Sono. "We worked together for a long time, and I can testify that Sono was a selfless and trusted senior member of the church who worked tirelessly for God. He always spoke his mind when things were not going well in the church," he said.
Mr Themba Sono, one of the deceased's sons, said the family had suffered a great loss with the death of their father. "It is painful to lose someone so precious to us, but we thank God, because He does everything for a reason," he said.