Moths – it is about camaraderie

The Dickie Fritz Memorable Order of Tin Hats (Moths) is a well known establishment in the Edenvale area.

According to Mr Ronald De Roche, joining the MOTHS was a form of camaraderie.

“I could identify with the guys who have also been in active service. It gave me a sense of coming home because ordinary civilians wouldn’t understand. It was like a brotherhood and it was our common denominator,” he said.

Mr De Roche, who was in the Angolan conflict in 1976, said he moved to Johannesburg after he finished his military career in 1977 because he was in the diamond trade and it was more lucrative to move.

“I joined the Moths in 1984. I then left the order for a couple of years and since my return, I have been involved with it ever since 1989.

“I was retrenched six years ago and stayed in the south. I was offered a job by the Moths as the complex manager in Fairland on the West Rand,” he said.

It was after four years when Mr De Roche was asked by management to move to Dickie Fritz in Edenvale. He said the Moths started in 1927 in Durban, and it was mainly to look after returning servicemen who were in need of assistance.

“After World War II broke out, thousands of members joined the order. There were shell holes found across the world. Soldiers who were in dire need would make an application and the Moths would look after them,” he said.

He said the most significant moment was when he was called up to Angola.

“It was a wake up call. The worst was leaving my family behind.

“We were fortunate to have only lost one guy. However, losing someone who was in the same regiment as I made me realise it could happen to me. When we heard he was killed by a grenade it struck home,” he said.

Mr De Roche said his motivation was merely because he didn’t have a choice.

“Once you received your matric papers they took you and placed you where you were needed. My family also had no choice as I would go to prison if I had refused to go,” he said.

“The army teaches you to look out for one another and it builds great team work. We never forget our fallen comrades.

“Although we are a non-profit organisation, we help one another as much as possible,” he said.