Glen Anil para athlete inspires donation from surf shop owner
Jean-Marc Tostee, who owns Surf HQ on Durban's beachfront, donated two knee boards to Williams, who is the current SA Para Surfing Champ in the kneel division.
WHEN Glen Anil resident and para-surfer, David Williams featured on the front page of the Northglen News more than two weeks ago it would prove to be a spark of inspiration for surf shop owner Jean-Marc Tostee.
Tostee, who owns Surf HQ on Durban’s beachfront, donated two knee boards to Williams, who is the current SA Para Surfing Champ in the kneel division.
The boards belonged to a good friend of Tostee and someone who loved surfing, Leighton Alcock.
“Leighton recently passed away and he absolutely loved surfing. When he passed his family donated two of his knee boards and asked me to find a good home for them. When I read about David (Williams) in the Northglen News, it was all the inspiration I needed. Leighton’s family asked me to find a deserving person and I could think of no one better than David. It is also a way to honour Leighton’s memory.
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“David has come a long way since he started surfing and now that he is in line to represent the country at the ISA World Para-Surfing Championships in the USA later in the year, we felt he needed a more advanced board. Both these knee boards are both perfect for David and his needs and I don’t want to put pressure on him, but he has to bring home gold now from the world champs,” he quipped. “In all seriousness this was a way of giving back and I’m confident the boards will help his performances immensely,” Tostee said.
For Williams, the donation meant carrying a piece of Leighton out on the waves.
“I’m really blown away by the gesture and it’s an honour for me to inherit these boards. Anytime I’ve visited the shop everyone has been so supportive and willing to help no matter what. I’m grateful to the Alcock family and to Jean-Marc for this touching gesture. Like he said this is a way to honour his memory. For anybody involved in this sport, the love of the ocean is always there. Being able to take these boards back to the water and love them and knowing that a bit of Leighton will be out there with me is incredibly special,” he said.
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