Chivalry is not dead, and 23-year-old Shafiek Dampies is living proof of it.
Dampies from Steenberg has been hailed a hero on social media after a post surfaced thanking him for the assistance he offered to a stranded woman and her young children.
He told the Daily Voice that he was surprised when he was tagged in the post two days ago by the woman’s husband, Jason Mathews.
“All they had was my name, so they probably went through every Shafiek profile on Facebook,” said Dampies.
Mathews’ appreciation post received more than 4 000 reactions and comments from mense thanking the young man for his braveness and kind heart.
A soft-spoken Dampies said his act of chivalry happened a week ago, when he came upon the woman’s car shortly before midnight.
“What happened was, I was on my way home from klopse band practice when I saw a car standing close to Bokmakierie, in the direction of the N2.
“As I approached closer I saw the light inside the car was on. I looked and saw it was a lady with two small children.”
Dampies said he immediately decided to reverse to find out if the woman was OK, at the same time checking for skelms possibly setting a trap.
“By that time, the woman had been stranded for about 20 minutes.
“Obviously I was a bit weary because of the world we’re living in now, but I could see she was also just as worried.
“She told me she was OK and waiting for her husband to come help her as her tyre was flat.
“I continued speaking to her so that she could also have peace of mind with me being there,” he explained.
“I then asked her if she had a jack and spare tyre and changed the wheel for her while she kept an eye over my back because the area is not a very safe one.”
The single outjie said he also drove behind the mom and kids to make sure they get to their Newfields home.
“This is something I would do for anyone who is in need because it’s something I would also want for myself.
“Also it takes nothing from you to help someone,” the humble young man added.
tracy-lynn.ruiters@inl.co.za