Remembering Dennis Pather, from copy boy to editor
Retire editor and author Dennis Pather was laid to rest yesterday. His funeral service took place at St Thomas' Anglican Church on Musgrave Road.
Image: Leon Lestrade / Independent Media
GATHERED in sombre reflection at St Thomas' Anglican Church on Musgrave Road, family, friends, and colleagues celebrated the life and legacy of Dennis Pather, retired deputy editor of the Sunday Tribune, who was laid to rest today.
Pather, who was a writer, columnist and editor of several newspaper titles in the Independent Group, died last week Sunday at the age of 80.
Born and raised in KwaDukuza on the north coast, Pather's journey began in 1967 as a copy boy and cub reporter at the Golden City Post, marking the foundation of a career that would encompass several prestigious titles, including Drum, The Leader, The Graphic, The Post, Daily News, Saturday Paper, and The Mercury.
His tenure as deputy editor of the Sunday Tribune lasted until his retirement in 2010, after which he continued to influence the next generation of journalists through mentorship and consultancy, as well as copy editing and writing editorials and columns.
In 1980 he spent four months at the International Institute for Journalism in Germany. One of the highlights of Dennis’s journalistic career was his being awarded the Nieman Fellowship in 1988, to study at Harvard University in the United States.
Pather's lengthy and illustrious career in journalism was chronicled in his memoir, Copy Boy: Journey from Newsroom Gofer to Award-winning Editor, which was launched at the Durban International Book Fair in August 2023.
Pather's long-time friend Betty Govinden eloquently encapsulated Pather’s journey at his funeral service: “From a nondescript assistant in the backrooms of an obscure newspaper office during the heyday of apartheid, you traversed many roads."
"You started from scratch, learning the ropes about reporting on courtroom cases, and of the intricacies and demands of the newsroom, all this alongside police harassment, and narrow censorship laws.
"This was an exacting road for anyone, especially an aspiring Black journalist, to tread at the time, as the apartheid noose tightened. Beginning in 1967, as a copy boy, a “gofer”, "a convenient dogsbody” to a cub reporter. You describe the daily toil as “dehumanising” but your resilience to stay the course was exemplary. Your journey may have begun in the backrooms but you ended in the newsrooms and front rooms of the city, the nation, and beyond," said Govinden.
Govinden, an acclaimed academic, researcher, and poet, thanked Pather for his book, Copy Boy, "your bequest to posterity. We will ever treasure your remarkable journey as a true patriot of the beloved country".
"We remember the halcyon days, trudging to Stanger High School on the north coast. The motto of our alma mater, “Semper Sursum” (Always Upwards). This was to define your life in the years that lay ahead."
Pather is survived by his wife, Kay, children Brendan and Nisha and grandchildren.