In developing the new Rhino Ridge Safari Lodge, Isibindi wanted to focus extensively on community development, and S\u2019phamandla explains that almost all the staff are employed from the local Hlabisa community. \u201cThe staff are a unique group of people, so welcoming and caring. There is such a nice spirit here.\u201d He is proud that 49% of the lodge is owned by the local community.<\/p>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.isibindi.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2015\/11\/Instasize_1021191044_resized.jpg\")
The lounge of Rhino Ridge Safari Lodge which Sphamandla manages<\/p><\/div>\n
I sense there is a story underlying his commitment to staff development and ask about his own background and S\u2019phamandla humbly reflects \u201cIt\u2019s true – people sometimes see where you are today and forget where you come from.\u201d He describes his own early life growing up at the base of the Drakensberg mountains, raised by a single parent, his mother. He says \u201cMy Mom is the one who supported me to get to this level.\u201d A domestic worker, she said to her children \u201cI will be the last one in my family to be uneducated\u201d and she encouraged S\u2019phamandla saying \u201cSchool is your future. I want you to be able to stand alone and have a good life.\u201d He says \u201cShe was philosophical about life, even when it was a struggle. I saw how much she sacrificed for us and I wanted to make her proud of who I am today. I wanted to get further than even she expected. When I was flown to Kenya to receive awards for service excellence she was so proud of that moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
S\u2019phamandla himself is dedicated to his own family and spends as much time as he can with his wife and children. Having grown up without a father he seems to have overcome this by determining a different outcome for his own children, much like his mother did with him.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
![\"Sphamandla\"](\"https:\/\/www.isibindi.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2015\/11\/Sphamandla.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Sometimes it feels to me like domestic workers are upgrading the South African nation, quietly, without recognition, humbly and ever so proudly, raising children with good values which extend beyond their own wellbeing. I think any mother would be bursting with pride to have a son like this, so dedicated to his own family and to uplifting the lives of others by giving back the type of investment he received from her. I think I will trail after him just a little bit longer and see what else I can absorb from this man of hope and loveliness.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I have to restrain myself from trailing around after the new luxury Rhino Ridge Safari Lodge manager for the two days that I stay at this breath-taking haven. S\u2019phamandla Shabalala is like a calm, wise older brother and it feels that one can imbibe his spirit simply by being in his presence. I determine to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1557,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[262,28,25,281],"tags":[29,193,58,60,114,37,81,38,180,62,52,195,53,144,200,63,464,75,465],"yoast_head":"\n
Full Circle - Isibindi Foundation<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Full Circle - Isibindi Foundation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I have to restrain myself from trailing around after the new luxury Rhino Ridge Safari Lodge manager for the two days that I stay at this breath-taking haven. S\u2019phamandla Shabalala is like a calm, wise older brother and it feels that one can imbibe his spirit simply by being in his presence. I determine to…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Isibindi Foundation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-11-27T00:25:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-01-20T08:21:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/\",\"name\":\"Full Circle - Isibindi Foundation\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-11-27T00:25:58+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-01-20T08:21:56+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/#\/schema\/person\/1bc557889d4f21a5fbc99ed57e912df3\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"\",\"contentUrl\":\"\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Full Circle\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/\",\"name\":\"Isibindi Foundation\",\"description\":\"Just another Isibindi Worpdress Network Sites site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/#\/schema\/person\/1bc557889d4f21a5fbc99ed57e912df3\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/12025a14e19e34fe84c9b3a76fb5d3ad?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/12025a14e19e34fe84c9b3a76fb5d3ad?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/author\/admin\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Full Circle - Isibindi Foundation","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Full Circle - Isibindi Foundation","og_description":"I have to restrain myself from trailing around after the new luxury Rhino Ridge Safari Lodge manager for the two days that I stay at this breath-taking haven. S\u2019phamandla Shabalala is like a calm, wise older brother and it feels that one can imbibe his spirit simply by being in his presence. I determine to…","og_url":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/","og_site_name":"Isibindi Foundation","article_published_time":"2015-11-27T00:25:58+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-01-20T08:21:56+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/","url":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/","name":"Full Circle - Isibindi Foundation","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"","datePublished":"2015-11-27T00:25:58+00:00","dateModified":"2023-01-20T08:21:56+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/#\/schema\/person\/1bc557889d4f21a5fbc99ed57e912df3"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/#primaryimage","url":"","contentUrl":""},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/2015\/11\/27\/full-circle\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Full Circle"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/","name":"Isibindi Foundation","description":"Just another Isibindi Worpdress Network Sites site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-ZA"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/#\/schema\/person\/1bc557889d4f21a5fbc99ed57e912df3","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/12025a14e19e34fe84c9b3a76fb5d3ad?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/12025a14e19e34fe84c9b3a76fb5d3ad?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"url":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/author\/admin\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1555"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1555"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1555\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12313,"href":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1555\/revisions\/12313"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1555"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1555"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/isibindifoundation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1555"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Rhino](\"https:\/\/www.isibindi.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2015\/11\/2015-11-27-02.02.03.jpg\")