A Hout Bay mother is urging the public to donate clothing, toys, blankets and other useful items as part of a Mandela Day effort to keep alive her late son’s legacy of giving.
Tracy Chubb’s son, Cameron, helped to establish Jumping for Jerseys in 2020, to help the needy in Imizamo Yethu.
“This organisation meant so much to him, and he loved giving back to his community and helping others,” says Tracy.
Cameron studied at Stellenbosch University and got his Honours in accounting, auditing and tax. But on the night of his final exams in November last year, he tripped and fell down a fight of stairs at his Stellenbosch flat and hit his head on rail. He suffered bleeding on his brain as a result, and, despite emergency neurosurgery, he died several days later. He was 23.
“I had just received an SMS from him saying he arrived safely at his flat in Stellies,” recalls Tracy. “He had so much going for him; he was meant to start at Ernst & Young in January for articles.”
Determined to carry on her son’s legacy of helping others, she donated all his organs, including his skin, and saved eight lives in the process.
Tracy and two of Cameron’s friends have registered the Cameron Chubb Foundation, a non-profit company, which they also call Jumping for Jerseys.
Tracy says they raised R16 000 at a silent disco to celebrate Cameron’s life and they have pledged R10 000 in his name to Ikhaya Lethemba in Imizamo Yethu.
“He always supported them with clothing or toys and book collections, showing support for their water and veggie patch projects too,” Tracy says.
Cameron decided to start Jumping for Jerseys after he went to visit the family of a murdered friend and discovered his friend had been the sole bread winner.
“Seeing the poverty broke his heart, and he decided he wanted to start trying to make a difference. He wanted to be a game-changer and use his degree to help uplift communities with a focus on education,” says Tracy.
Cameron started by taking his friend’s family a pot of stew that he cooked, some money and clothes.
“The family was so grateful, and he felt inspired. Then Covid hit and he came home and started reading all my spiritual books and also did the Art of Living mediation courses and was further inspired.
“He told me he finally realised the secret to living was in giving.”
Cameron and his mother came up with the name Jumping for Jerseys, a play on jumping for joy, and he began collecting donations after creating a Facebook page. They started by supporting Ikyaha Lethemba.
“He also held an event out in Stellenbosch. He was going to take it up a level once he was done with his Honours year,” says Tracy, adding that, for her, supporting Ikhaya Lethemba on Mandela Day is a way to relive Cameron’s generosity.
“They have given us Mandela Day to distribute the collections we have done this year, and we plan to hand out the collections, hand over a R10 000 cheque raised at his silent-disco life celebration to their water/veggie patch project, and we also have fun activities planned.”
Ikhaya Lethemba programme manager Sanele Krishe says they were shocked when they heard of Cameron’s death.
“We were all so sad when the news came through, and it felt like we never had the chance to say a proper goodbye, which is why we decided to have this Mandela Day, more like a celebration of his life.
“He was extremely passionate about helping our organisation and was always speaking about us to others and asking them to help as well. He will be sorely missed, and we hope we can celebrate his life the way he would, which is to give back and help.”
For more information, email jumpingforjerseys@gmail.com or visit the Jumping for Jerseys Facebook page.
