By Fahdia Msaka
In the face of desperate food insecurity and high unemployment, Food4Futures, started by Mary Birt, is resolutely committed to serving the residents of Makhanda.
Sithembile Xaso, an Eastern Cape filmmaker, heard Birt’s story and knew it had to be told. And so, along with Nontheleleo Sethulo Chirwa, Lonwabo Chagi, and Archy Loloane, they produced a documentary. Its title is still under wraps but Grocott’s Mail attended a private screening when the film makers were in Makhanda recently.
The story begins in the mid-1970s with a young Mama Mary, whose passion for food shaped much of her life. She worked at a restaurant called The Underground on what we now know as New Street, regularly serving Rhodes University students. She fondly recalled how she met Steve (her husband) there, over a meal she served him. Ironically, her first impressions of him were of irritation and annoyance. Their love story unfolded like a scene from a film: she was the waitress with an “irritating” customer, and he was the man who insisted her food was “nothing special”, yet he kept returning for more.
Now, over 50 years later, Steve still smiles when telling the story. Mama Mary and her husband have different versions of how they fell in love, each insisting the other fell first. “It has become something we entertain our grandchildren with,” he said.
The seeds of Food4Futures were planted years later when a hungry young man knocked on Mama Mary’s door in suburban Makhanda. She admitted that her first thoughts were clouded by judgment: he looks dirty, he smells unpleasant, and he looks sketchy. She stepped outside, closing the gate firmly behind her, unwilling to let this stranger enter her world.
But as Mama Mary listened, something shifted. She felt what she described as “a Godly presence”, a conviction that cut straight to her heart like a veil had been lifted over her eyes. In that instant, she recognised his dignity, his humanity, his worth. Earlier that morning, she had prayed to God for the chance to help someone. Standing before this man, she realised: he was her answered prayer. That was the moment Food4Futures was born.
The documentary also tells the stories of Mama Mary’s staff. Each described their journey as individuals who needed help and intervention. The bonds they share today reflect how deeply Mama Mary’s mission is woven into the fabric of Makhanda’s community.
The key take away from the documentary is that the lives and connections touched by Food4Futures is inseparable from Mama Mary, her team and the town of Makhanda. Together they have built an organisation that nourishes not only with food, but with love, dignity, and spiritual care. Their Christian identity shapes a space of welcome, where community members know they can knock on the door without fear.
“I want to see the lives we have been involved with gain a deeper sense of dignity and self-worth,” Birt said. She envisions a future where the lives she touches daily inspire others, creating a network of positivity that could perhaps bring light to the darkness that surrounds the world.
After the screening, viewers used words that captured the spirit of the film: comforting, emotional, spiritual, worthy, life-affirming, and unique. We all left the room not only with full stomachs but with hearts overflowing.
