But his early years were happy and carefree despite being an only child. His playmates were the African children on the farm and as a result his first language was Sesotho after which he learnt English and Afrikaans. His remained fluent in Sesotho, although a little rusty in latter years, for the rest of his life. He also never missed an opportunity when meeting with a Lozi to converse with them in Lozi / Sesotho, the languages being so similar.
From a young age, horses were also part of his life. He first rode on a horse on his “father’s lap” learning to ride almost as soon as he was able to walk. His grandfather had been an excellent horseman, regularly being asked to go to the Cape Province to train horses for the Governor of the Cape and who was still riding a horse at the age of 93.
George started his education at a farm school, riding to school on horseback each day. He attended Ficksburg High School for his secondary education and in his last year he was the Head Boarder Prefect. He also represented his school at rugby and water polo. But at the farm school he had a poor grounding in English which fact was to shape his future as, taking English rather than Afrikaans as his main language, he failed Matric although he gained two distinctions in other subjects (chemistry and maths, we think). His re-write of Matric again resulted in two distinctions but still a fail in English.
This meant he was unable to even consider going to University (had the money been available) to study law as he wanted to do. This explains his enormous pleasure at the fact that his eldest granddaughter is now doing her articles in Cape Town and in a few months will be a fully fledged Advocate (Barrister in UK terms)
Unable to go on to University he began to work for Johann Von Maltitz, one of the most successful farmers in the district but an extremely strict and hardworking man of German extraction. George was the first “trainee” to stay for a year and complete his time there - most absconded in the first month!
He was up at 2.00 each morning going to the dairy to supervise the milking of some 200 cows with milking machines. Breakfast was for a short specified time and when that was finished, he would spend the morning (often on horseback) in the fields supervising, attending to breakdowns etc. The major crop was wheat, which was to stand him in good stead when he decided to grow wheat, which he did very successfully for 30 plus years, on this farm. In the afternoons he returned to supervising the milking.
A few days after starting his training, he was standing in the dairy when Von Maltitz came through on his way to do something. He pushed George out of the way and told him never to get in the way of someone who is working and if someone gets in your way, just push them out of the way. A few days later, again in the dairy, George on his way to do something found the boss showing the Bank Manager around. Never one to miss an opportunity, George pushed Von Maltitz out of the way!
Mr. von Maltitz was a polo player of excellence so it was not long before George was learning and then playing each weekend in Hammonia. This was where his passion for polo began. It was also where he learnt to work hard and play hard. During the polo season, regardless of what work was going on at the farm, they stopped and went and played their polo.
George’s 21st birthday was on New Year’s Eve but the wheat was ripening and Mr. Von Maltitz said that he could go to the New Years Eve dance only if the reaping of the wheat was finished. He worked four days and nights without sleep (taking only a few naps at the side of the fields.) and finished in time to celebrate his birthday.
He had an amazing ability to go without sleep for an extended period if the occasion demanded it. When my maternal grandmother died, he was en-route to Lusaka from Pretoria transporting cattle for Angus Loggie. He had driven all Thursday and Friday, coming through the Zambezi Valley at night because of the tsetse, arriving in Lusaka on Saturday morning and leaving again that evening for Durban. Sharing the driving with Eileen they drove non-stop until they got to Harrismith at midnight on Sunday night where they stopped for a few hours sleep. All his life he survived on less than the usual 8 hours, but during the nearly six years of being in a wheelchair and unable to walk, this became a problem which his carers (and Eileen) would find hard to cope with.
After completing his year with Mr von Maltitz he went farming on his own doing wheat cattle and sheep, but though doing fairly well, he was struggling for lack of capital. Always a trusting person and expecting others to have the same high morals as he had, he went into a partnership with an older well off man who offered him the much needed capital. This was a disaster as his partner also ran up a lot of debts and left George to pay them off.
The result was that he had to give up farming and at the age of 25 joined Cooper and Nephews in Johannesburg, becoming a rep for them in the Transvaal area. In 1952/3 he was transferred to Bulawayo where he covered the Matabeleland area.
In July 1953 the Rhodes Centenary Exhibition was held in Bulawayo. One of the girls in his office invited him to join a group who were going to a special Night Club set up within the exhibition grounds. This was where he met Eileen and within the year they became engaged, marrying the following year. But he would not marry until his farming debts were paid off so Eileen had to sit it out and wait for him.
Earlier in 1954, had had been transferred to Lusaka to open up Coopers in Northern Rhodesia. He arrived in this country on 15 March 1954 ‘for three months’.
In the eight years that he ran Coopers here, he travelled the length and breadth of Northern Rhodesia, from Livingstone to Abercorn, Fort Jameson to Mongu, doing about 70,000 MILES a year on mostly gravel roads where sometimes he had to inspect plank bridges to see if they were safe to cross. I recall a story where once, near Chinsali he had a problem with the suspension of the car. He had managed to repair it by wedging in a piece of wood and driving with the left side wheels down the camber of the road. This was all well and good until he came across two lions lying in his path. He had no choice to sit and wait until the lions decided to move.
It was during these years that he came to know most of the livestock farmers in the country – the grandparents of many of today’s farmers – some of whom are here today and two of whom are putting in the Soya crop you see coming up in the lands beside the road as you drove here.
George and Eileen were initially the first occupants of a block of flats in Woodlands (which at that stage did not even have a shopping centre let alone the Pick n Pay we have today). They subsequently built a house at what is now Ingwe Road but in 1961, with two bedrooms and by that time three children, they rented out their house and rented a house in Roma for about 6 months. But then the owner returned from the Copperbelt and wanted his house back, so they stored their furniture and went on holiday.
On the way back from holiday they heard that friends were having to vacate their rented house on the Leopards Hill Road. They phoned Roddy McFadden, the Estate Agent, and moved in when they got back to Lusaka into the house which now still belongs to the Chipimo family. It had 25 acres of land. George bought an old tractor for 25 pounds, refurbished it, and grew a crop of tomatoes which brought in more profit than his annual salary with Coopers. That was also where Eileen wrapped a tractor round a tree and George decided she would be much more useful in the office than out in the lands!
Kapuka Farm (opposite Kyindu) had been bought by Cobbett Tribe Estate Agents, stripped of the fencing and movable assets and came on the market for a lower price.
After the Standard Bank manager – fortunately a farmer’s son - came out, chatted with George and Eileen – and saw the tomato crop - they were able to borrow money from the Bank on the strength of their insurance policies. They also sold a plot in Roma which they were slowly paying off. Eileen went back to work for her previous employer, Richard Sampson, an accountant and also a previous mayor of Lusaka, to supplement their income.
But again, it was not all plain sailing. The soil had been tested, but not the deeper sub-soil, and as soon as the rain really set in the free lime came to the surface and destroyed the crop. Now what? Armed with the soil report George went to see the Bank Manager who agreed to stand by them and lend them money for the next crop. Years later, after the bank manager had retired, George and Eileen managed to locate him and visited him in Natal to thank him and tell him that his help had not been in vain!
Another person who had confidence in George was Carel Viljoen, the manager of Tarry’s, to whom they also owed money. He had known George in his Coopers days and he not only agreed to give them time to pay off the debt they owed but said that if they needed equipment they could also buy that on credit.
George had also been growing maize on land leased from old Mrs. Steyn, the original owner of the farm across the river. In 1964 the owners of THIS farm had decided they were not prepared to stay on under a “Black Government” and without even a down payment, the purchase documents were signed on the Saturday morning of Zambia’s Independence Day.
From 1964 to 1974 George farmed both Kapuka and this farm, concentrating on tomatoes here and greens at Kapuka. He was the first person in Zambia to start producing Broccoli and Brussel Sprouts.
In 1968, George and Eileen bought a stand in what is now Town Centre market (very different in those days) from Ernest Wienand, with George producing the vegetables and Eileen running the market stall. By selling directly to the public and cutting out the “middle man”, they were able to sell at a much more competitive price than others on the market. They also changed the store from a ‘hatch’ type to self-service – a new concept on the market. A year or two later, they bought a second stall which was also converted to self-service. To give you an idea of the volume of goods passing through the shop, they imported a railway truck load of fruit direct from the Cape every fortnight.
It was hard work and long hours (up at 4.30) but it set them on their feet financially and fours years later, in 1972, they sold both stalls and George started growing wheat. In 1974 Kapuka was sold to Dr. Carruthers and George built this house and moved over here.
Subsequently he also rented land both from Fenella Pestel and Sunrose and spent a huge amount of time travelling back and forth between the three farms supervising staff etc. He was still actively farming six years ago when he became wheelchair bound and even then he did not stop, he only changed his management style – the planning, the strategising, the problem solving was still done by him. He would be driven around his wheat fields regularly. On one occasion during reaping time, obviously wanting to have a better look at the crop, he had his staff lift his wheelchair onto the back of the pickup, then onto the back of the truck and from there, he was put in the cab of the combine! It was only earlier this year that he agreed to work something out with the grandsons of his good friend Charlie Stubbs and he hung up his muddy boots after 50 years of farming successfully in Zambia.
He was certainly never shy of hard work! Yet he still had time to play.
George had represented Northern Rhodesia at polo in 1954 in a game against Southern Rhodesia and Eileen had played tennis and hockey in between having children!
But when they went farming they had both given up sport because it was costly. In 1968 George went to South Africa and bought a couple of horses, starting polo again (at Lusaka Polo Club). Eileen joined Lusaka Club and went back to tennis, later being ‘roped back’ into hockey then also playing squash. Later on George left Lusaka Polo Club saying sport was for pleasure, not disagreements. However, Paul Taylor persuaded him to go and play in Mazabuka, probably thinking it would only last a short while. But Paul did not realize how stubborn George was. He, Eileen and the horses travelled to Mazabuka every Saturday morning and back every Sunday afternoon for more than 17 years, where they also made some of their closest friends. He finally gave up polo when he was well into his 60’s, but he never lost his passion for the sport and would go to tournaments whenever possible.
But despite all the hard work, he also had time and passion for the community in which he lived and worked and especially when it was farming related. Over the last 50 years, he served as Chairman of many voluntary organisations. As a younger man he was very involved in the Chongwe District Intensive Cultivation Association and the Commercial Farmers Bureau, mainly on the labour committee. He was also instrumental in getting the Zambia Farm Employers Association started and was the first Chairman of the Joint Industrial Council for the agricultural industry. This ultimately led to him being on the board of the Zambia National Provident Fund of which he ultimately became Chairman although only for a year, probably due to him stomping on the feet of some people in high places – controversy was never something which he shied away from.
When George became chairman of the Commercial Farmers Bureau (now ZNFU), he worked at it with a passion. In that time he also identified a young man on the Copperbelt Farmers Association and began “grooming” him to become the first Black Chairman of the CFB – which he did. That man, Ben Kapita is, I think, here with us today.
Shortly before becoming Chairman of the CFB, Government had closed down the Zambia Medical Aid hospital. That farmers (or anyone else) did not have access to reasonable medical treatment was unacceptable to him. His proposal that the CFB become involved in setting up a clinic of a good standard for farmers was met with much resistance by some of his colleagues on the CFB executive, but he forged ahead with it turning it over to others to manage. Hence the name Care For Business.
Recognising the potential for agriculture in Zambia and the need to encourage investment in the industry, George together with Ben Oglesby also prepared and presented to Government a white paper which resulted in farming tax being lowered considerably, then lowered further to 30% and finally set at 15%, a tax rate that farmers still enjoy to this day, over 30 years later.
Closely related to the CFB was the Show Society. Sally Dean persuaded him to take over the supervision of the Gates and Ticketing committee of the Show Society, a real challenge. This resulted in his being elected Chairman of the Show Society Chairman in 1992 and 1993. The main highlight of the 1992 was a circus which came up from South Africa and which turned out to be a big crowd puller giving the Show Society the financial boost that it desperately needed. In 1993, when South Africa was coming out of isolation, he proposed that President de Klerk be invited to open the show. Again, George was never afraid of controversy and being an Afrikaner at heart, it was to be expected. But it paid off and brought onboard many new exhibitors from south of the Limpopo.
George also served on the board of Standard Chartered Bank, was Chairman of the Zambia Polo Association and served on the team which was responsible for privatising many of the parastatal farms.
As a husband, father and grandfather he is much loved and respected.
As children, the disciplinarian in the family was certainly George (although Eileen didn’t do too badly either) and his children were taught from a very early age the difference between right and wrong. With George there was only black and white or right and wrong, no 50 shades of grey. I for one got many a hiding - at the time they were very unfair but in reality and with hindsight – I deserved every one of them. We knew very clearly the rules and we obeyed those rules.
But at the same time, he was always fair, he gave us encouragement, he gave us guidance, he gave us support in our endeavours and he was always ready to give wise and well-considered advice and help us to work through our problems. He also loved to tease and joke and had a wonderful sense of humour. As children our house was filled with laughter although we all spent many years away at boarding school. The need for us to be properly educated was a responsibility he took very seriously.
Yet he was also compassionate and caring as well as generous and would help anyone in need. But abuse his generosity and it would be cut off and you would also know why you had lost his support. Many of the people he helped we will never know about as he did not believe in talking about it. He just got on and helped where he could.
He treated his staff with respect and fairly, but at the same time with compassion and understanding, much like he treated his children and grandchildren with the exception that his grandchildren were given chocolate from a hidden stash each time they visited.
George’s integrity is something that can never be brought into question. He would never pay a bribe and would never accept a bribe. Whilst Chairman of CFB he was offered an "incentive" to assist pushing through a Cashew nut plant in Western Province, he refused it as he believed it was not a viable proposition and tried to persuade the concerned company to rather invest in a more viable venture which would be of better benefit for Zambia as a Country. The plant was eventually established and failed as predicted by George - he maintained some one was bribed for this project
He was very impatient with time wasters – 'just get to the point'.
He was a very straight and clear thinker with incredible vision. He would work things out in his head long before implementing them and had all the strategies worked out.
He was stubborn - a Capricorn through and through - stubborn almost to a fault but once he had set a course he would stubbornly go forward. He brought many an institution and his farm back from bankruptcy to a viable and profitable institution - he would convince bank managers to believe in him and trust him, often putting in his own funds to see the cause through. Then he would step back and allow someone else to run it.
It was very difficult to change his mind once he had set his course. That said his course would be the correct way and in the end the best way. Many of us … well, me for one only saw this after many years. And it set me in good stead after he fired me in 1980 (something for which I am eternally grateful or else I would be battling on a farm here or somewhere else trying to survive today)
He was very direct and straight forward. As one of the MD’s of Standard Bank said – ‘His advice was always to the point and delivered directly whatever the message without any hesitation.’
He was a farmer and knew if there is a blockage in a pipe at one end you do not waste time trying to unblock it from the one side - go start at the other end - many of our past and present government Ministers and Senior officials will attest to this having had George storm into their offices demanding that things be corrected the Right Way – a bit like Frank Sinatra's My Way but in George's way, the Right way.
Passion – George’s greatest passion was for the land and for ZAMBIA. He always maintained Zambia could be the bread basket of Africa, and we are getting there but far too slowly for George's vision. Yet he never lost his love for and pride in being a South African.
He had a great memory and could and would remember things many of us had forgotten even down to the registration number of the vehicle that the manager at Transcontinental drove back in the 70’s or what meal Tissa Kirby had given him when he called at the farm in 1959. We had started taping some of his stories from his early days in Northern Rhodesia, but sadly this is a project which is far from complete.
Some of the messages we have received from friends over the last few days say a lot about the man he was:
- I will always remember Uncle George as a man full of energy, wisdom and intelligence
- I shall always remember him as a man of great character and great principles
- As a Director of Standard Chartered Bank Zambia and made a valuable contribution to the Bank's prosperity in those days
- Despite our difference in age, George was a mate of mine especially through our polo days...one thing for sure he will have the best string of horses waiting for him...Bridge Chat, Little Mo, Billy Jean
- another one of our great "old icons" gone
- Such a character, and a hard act to follow
- George Bender will long be remembered as one of the characters of Lusaka and Districts
- I do remember George so well, he was a great personality in his shorts, long socks, and hat! A brilliant farmer
- We trust George will have met up with all the boxer dogs that he loved so dearly (and his beloved little Muckledoo).
- Another of a great generation gone
- I always knew where I stood with him
- He will be well remembered, one of the legends
- Another of Lusaka's great and legendary folk passes on