In preparation for our trip to South Africa, I thought I would pay a visit to the former mayor of Mocksville and notable physician, Dr. Francis Slate. He recently celebrated his one-hundredth birthday, which is quite a milestone. I reminded him that he was my surgeon at the Davie County Hospital when I was about four years old. When I told him I was going to South Africa, and more specifically to Johannesburg and Cape Town, his eyes lit up.
Dr. Slate graduated in 1947 from the University of Cape Town medical school which was a six-year course. He received a degree, CHb in surgery. Afterward, he participated in his internship at Cape Town, SA , and then a six months internship in Durban, SA, and then he worked at the Johannesburg Mission Hospital, where he later left to do a one-year stent in the landlocked country of Lesotho, a country surrounded by South Africa. He later found himself at New York University and George Washington University and spent two years with the Veteran's Administration. Most people in our community know Dr. Slate as Mayor Dr. Francis Slate, serving the town of Mocksville for years as Mayor.
While we visited, I pulled out the map of South Africa and received an informative tour of the country. He was excited to know we were going to be doing a safari, a trip to the wine country, and a visit to the Cape of Good Hope.
I enjoyed my visit. I shared with him what a good job Mayor Will Marklin was doing and how he was responsible to laying the groundwork for such a great town.
I told him that I would be having a guide the entire trip, Joff Von Reenen, A fellow Auctioneer & friend. He is the lead auctioneer at High Street Auctions in Johannesburg
It was a great visit. I asked him what one thing he would like to tell the citizens of Mocksville; he said "You need to appreciate the thing you have, the landscapes of our beautiful community, the local government, and the good people of Davie County."
