When a young Bethelsdorp man headed to a shop around the corner from his family home to buy ingredients for supper, he had barely stepped out the front door when gunshots rang out.
Retired Nelson Mandela Bay councillor Anne du Plessis never rested during her 15 years of service to the people of the northern areas, believing problems did not keep office hours.
For nearly four decades they shaped and inspired young minds, and recently Kroneberg Primary School in Bethelsdorp Extension 21 bid farewell to two stalwarts who started teaching back when the school was founded.
Communities and individuals doing it for themselves and those around them seems to be the trend at least in two Nelson Mandela Bay communities as the new year gets under way.