Losing My Virginity

by Richard Branson

  This story is the parable that founded Starfish, a small organisation that opens and runs AIDS Community Day Care Centres in South Africa. Virgin Unite has been working at a grassroots level and finding ways within the community to take care of these orphans. Africa is full of incredible, strong women, who seem to hold things together in a very Earth Mother kind of way. Nora is one. I can remember the first time I met her in a small village some forty-five minutes outside Johannesburg. There, in a dirt clearing, was a small tin shack and, in it, Nora, an elderly woman, was cooking food for the 200 orphans who lived with her during the day. Somehow, she achieved enough to feed them all by going out and finding the food, then cooking it on a tiny little stove. We were just standing there looking and all I could see was this sea of two hundred heads, tiny people and their eyes – so huge in hungry faces. They have no one, and are petrified to be picked up and hugged.

  Just one woman. There’s no way she can take care of 200 children, yet she does. It was scary. One way we can help is to invest in these women, who have seen the need and set up as surrogate mums and housemothers. It’s a huge issue and no one has really contemplated the results of what’s going to happen to children who grow up without the individual love and attention needed by a child who is developing emotionally. I looked around at so many children, playing or tucking into a simple meal, and I could see at once that there simply wasn’t enough room for them to sleep in the tiny shack.

  I asked, ‘Where do all these children sleep, Nora?’

  She laughed. ‘Oh, they’re like roosting birds. They scatter in every direction at night and find somewhere safe to sleep. In the morning, they come back like starlings to eat breakfast – and somehow I always manage to find something for them.’

  I felt humbled and emotional, but I also felt angry. If their mothers had been given antiretroviral drugs, they would have been there to bring up their children, instead of being used to line the pockets of the undertakers. Starfish was already helping Nora, but we gave them some money to help with expenses. Working with volunteers from Virgin Unite, we expanded Nora’s shack and built an extension on the side to let children sleep there, and then we provided her with a very big stove and promised her a constant supply of cooking fuel. We can’t give all of Nora’s children a family of their own, but we can help Nora and women like her.

  Sadly, the African continent is one of the few places in the world where the HIV prevalence rate continues to rise. By 2010, it is estimated that approximately three million children will be orphaned in South Africa alone. We support two Community Day Care Centres now. In October, we supported five more with the Loomba Trust. Cherie Blair came on that trip with us and launched them. If you think of the UK and US, we have so many resources. It’s very frustrating and we all need to do everything we can to stop this ridiculous situation from continuing. I certainly have let this passion boil over a few times, including at the formal dinner given by the Loomba Trust. People should not be dying from preventable and treatable diseases – no matter where they live in the world.

  The death from AIDS of one of our waiters at Ulusaba some years ago brought this home to me. HIV/AIDS was treatable in the West and the death rate had dropped dramatically. This, as I had already seen, was far from the case in Africa. To have someone in our midst die in this way was a shock. Despite his sickness Donald Makhubele had remained positive, composing poetry, music and songs. He’d written some beautiful words, which I read after his death, feeling choked that such a talented young man had been lost to us.

  The following writings were composed by our friend – Poet and Musician, Donald Makhubele. He passed on as a result of an AIDS-related illness. His music and his thoughts, along with these beautiful words, shall live on and enlighten others. He had hoped to reach people while he was alive and well, living with HIV, but the Universe deemed he would speak from beyond…

  KNOW THE TRUTH AND THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE

  A SHORT HISTORY ABOUT DONALD’S SICKNESS!

  The day 14 September 2003 was my second day of my employment at Ulusaba Private Game Reserve. It was summer, but in the middle of the night I started to feel cold. It felt like it was winter. I was bound to go knock on David’s room. David stayed next door, so I asked him for a heater because I could no longer stand the cold.

  The following morning David gave me some money to go to the doctor for a consultation. The doctor did not tell me what was killing me. He suspected Malaria; it was not Malaria. I came back to Ulusaba with a Doctor’s Note. I was not able to work until the days that were given to me to be off sick, came to an end.

  I returned back to work but since then my life was shacking. Every time I had to be absent from work because I was not feeling well. I’ve tried Songomas, Private Doctors, but all that was unviewed or fruitless.

  Then it happened one day after I went on annual leave I started to realise that my stomach was so big and very painful. Then I went to the Private Doctor, Dr V Hlatswayo at Hazyview. He helped me a lot, because he encouraged me to go to the Matikwane Hospital.

  ‘ADMIT & HUMBLE YOURSELVES IN ORDER TO GET HELP’

  The doctor and I agreed that I would go to the hospital. When I arrived there I was bound to be admitted because I was in a bad condition. They took me to have an X-ray, but the end result of that was that they did not find anything. They also did a blood test and still nothing, until they drained some of the water from my stomach; my stomach was full of water. They sent some to the laboratory so I was just waiting for the results. The result was that I have TB PLEURA.

  After the results I started to take TB Tablets they gave me (Rifampin) and, I must be honest with you, these tablets helped me a lot. I did manage to gain my body weight again. I gained my appetite, but my condition started to get worse, after I stopped the Rifampin. I took five tablets daily and changed to two tablets but it started again. I felt dizzy, losing my energy and I was sweating a lot. When I went back for a check-up I told them how I was feeling but they just didn’t take me into consideration. They were just doing their own things. I took the TB treatments for almost nine months, until I went back for another check-up for the last time, and then I asked them to do an HIV Test.

  ‘MY PEOPLE ARE DYING BECAUSE OF THE LACK OF KNOWLEDGE’

  They conducted the test and, after the results, they told me that I am HIV Positive, but they cannot give me any treatment because they are still waiting for my CD4 Count Results; only then they can see what to do. They also said that they couldn’t treat me if my CD4 cells are above 200; they will only give me treatment if it’s below 200.

  MY POINT OF VIEW

  As far as I am concerned about this the Government are supporting HIV/AIDS to do their job of destroying the Nation. They told me that my CD4 count is above 200, which means that my system is still strong and that’s why they cannot help me. So I thought, that is totally wrong. Why wait until my CD4 cells go down, before they’ll help me? Why can’t they make sure that the virus does not cross the boundary to go from HIV to AIDS?

  ‘BLESSED ARE THE PEOPLE WHO ARE EAGER TO HELP BECAUSE GOD WILL GIVE THEM WISDOM’

  Because of everything that I have experienced during my sickness and until now, I know what is killing me, I feel like I can Rise and Shine. So that people can know the truth and the truth can set everyone free. It took me time to decide whether I should do the test or not. Because I was scared that if they told me that I’m positive I’d start to worry and people will laugh at me. But I must tell you that now I know my status I’ve accepted it. I forgave myself and asked God for forgiveness and I have put everything behind me as I’m coming from X to next. I’m very bold and strong to live with it and I’ll never die as a Coward, but as a Hero.

  By the way, I’m a songwriter who writes about HIV and AIDS so I had to know my status so that I can practise what I preach. I just want to be an example, especially in our area as it is a rural area and the people are still scared to expose themselves. The virus will spread all over i
f we hide it from others.

  Let us work together as one, to be proud of ourselves and have the same purpose in order to defeat our enemy. This is not a disease but it is a war that is in Africa, aiming to destroy our continent. I’m pleading to everyone who can read this message to consider it and come out with something to help the nation.

  * * *

  I’M DONALD THE AFFECTED ONE

  As a man who is living with HIV, I’m always thinking about positive things in such a way that there is nothing painful happening to me anymore and I don’t have a room of disappointment in my heart as I’ve had worse disappointments in my life before. No more for the second time.

  I’m proud of myself, I love myself, and I’ll always look after myself for better health and I live for the lives and future of others. I’m now fully aware that I’m responsible for my family and myself and hope to be well again. I really didn’t believe that you can live with HIV and AIDS for a long time, but I believe that I have lived life with it for a period that I did not know about my condition. Now that I know, I promise you that it will be cured and it will leave me like a free man. Like a man who has been freed from jail or from Chains. I’m telling you that I’ll rise again. God said that he would give power to the weak so that they can fly like an Eagle.

  If this can work for me again I know that it can work for you, my friend; don’t even be scared to go and do the test because it is helpful, especially if you are unsure of your life status. This is a good time to go ahead and be brave enough to fight the sickness, and, listen, united we will stand, but divided we fall so let us work together in order to become victorious at the end of the day.

  The actual cause of Donald’s death was AIDS-induced TB; but malaria is also a major killer. After Donald died, I swore that no other Virgin employee would die unnecessarily. As a result of Donald’s moving words, and finding out more myself, I decided that it was wrong that any company anywhere in the world should lose any of its staff from AIDS, and that every company in the world should pledge that they would encourage their staff to be voluntarily tested and make sure they get antiretrovirals in time to avoid HIV ever becoming AIDS. The first thing was to try to get our own house in order. So my wife Joan and I started the process by pulling in all the people who worked for us together in the bush. We then took an HIV test in front of everybody and we tried to get as many people as possible to take it. Most of them did; and we also asked young people who had HIV to come and explain how antiretroviral drugs had saved their lives, as an example to everyone of how the programme worked. We made two films, particularly for Africans, explaining, in simple and straightforward terms: how the body works; how antiretroviral drugs work; how the immune system works; what happens when the CD4 level drops below 200; why people are dying; how they can avoid dying; and that condoms save lives. In a test in one of our businesses in South Africa, nearly 24 per cent were HIV positive. I’m afraid that it’s about average, which basically means that 24 per cent of our staff would die within six to seven years if they did not have access to antiretrovirals. We made it clear that we would supply anybody who had a CD4 count that dropped below 300 with antiretroviral drugs free of charge. We also rolled out the 0% Challenge across all our businesses worldwide, focusing on ensuring that no Virgin staff members would ever die from AIDS, that 0% would become HIV positive, and that 0% of HIV positive pregnant mothers would pass on HIV to their baby. This also includes 0% tolerance of any discrimination against HIV positive people within our businesses.

  Donald said, ‘This is not a disease but it is a war that is in Africa, aiming to destroy our continent. Let us work together as one, to be proud of ourselves and have some purpose in order to defeat our enemy.’ In memory of Donald, I’ve decided to set up a ‘War Room’ to help co-ordinate and unite all the organisations in Africa who are trying to defeat African diseases. The ‘War Room’ will map out the problems, seek out best practices, and move and maximise resources. It will get on with the job rather than arguing and debating. It will alert the world to new diseases like AIDS before they get out of control. It will fight HIV, malaria, TB and fistula. It will mobilise experts, movers and shakers to get out to particular areas fast by pulling in contacts, governments and founders. Its ultimate aim is to make sure there are no more Donalds and that, through his death, thousands of others live.

  After Donald died I happened to visit the local hospital with my mum and, by chance, came across a delightful man called Dyke, who used to be a game driver for Ulusaba. He was lying in a bed without hope, basically just a skeleton with no body fat left on him whatsoever. When he saw my mum, there was a glimpse of recognition and happiness in his eyes. We instantly put him on antiretroviral drugs. His improvement was immediate. He completely recovered. Thanks to getting proper medicine and treatments, he went from literally death’s door to leading a normal life again. Everyone who has AIDS should have this opportunity of being reborn. Very sadly, Dyke has recently died from a bout of malaria that he contracted on a trip to Mozambique – which has made me even more determined not to let a small insect continue to wipe out thousands of people in Africa every single day.

  I did some research with Virgin Unite and a wonderful man from Anglo American called Dr Brian Brink into finding a blueprint of hope and, amongst treeless, rocky hills and the dismal poverty of the dusty rural townships of Elandsdoorn in Limpopo Province, we came across the Ndlovu Medical Centre. It is run by Dr Hugo Templeman, an earnest Dutch physician, who has dedicated the past fifteen years to treating HIV/AIDS, as well as the other big diseases that kill Africans: TB and malaria.

  One of the first things I noticed when I was shown around was the cluster of small development projects outside Ndlovu hospital, including a bakery, a repair shop, nappy manufacturing, pre-schools, computer school, car washes, a gym, all offering employment to locals. Hugo saw I was impressed.

  ‘Yes, we’re all about hope – and we want people to know that they will get well. They also need to make a living to keep themselves and their families while they are being treated.’

  Dr Brink had fought a stubborn battle over many years to get antiretroviral drugs prescribed free of charge to any of Anglo’s tens of thousands of workers who needed them. He finally won by pointing out that the loss in trained staff cost more economically than the costs of the drugs themselves. Once he won that battle he then said, ‘Now, what about the miners’ families, who have HIV and AIDS?’

  I admired his forthright attitude and, with Hugo and Virgin Unite, we discussed what it would take to build a hospital to serve the Sabi-Sands district around Ulusaba. My first venture in helping to control the spread of HIV was in the early 1990s when I launched a charity, Mates condoms. It was a big step from free Mates condoms to joining with Anglo American to create a one-stop healthcare centre. We decided that the new hospital would be named the Bhubezi Community Health Centre after the Zulu word for lion. It would serve 100,000 people. Treatment for HIV, TB and malaria would be free, but other medical services would have a modest charge that will help ensure that the clinic becomes sustainable over time. The 100,000 people around Ulusaba would be protected. However, for those who live far from the hospital, the treatment needs to get to them.

  It is difficult to reach that ‘last mile’ in remote areas with health services. So we kicked off a campaign called Heaven’s Angels across the whole Virgin Group to raise money to buy and maintain motorbikes. The businesses, especially Virgin Trains and Virgin Atlantic, have done a wonderful job raising over $1m (US) to put over 100 bikes on the road. The working model we are building is that someone from a village buys the bike through a loan; in return, they are trained and paid to deliver healthcare on the motorbike three days a week, and the rest of the week they can use the bike for their own entrepreneurial activity. In this way, it becomes sustainable and creates jobs for people within the communities. In 2007 we began to test this model with a great partner called SHEF, who have already built over sixty-four sustainable clinics a
nd pharmacies across Kenya – all owned by local people. We’d like to scale that up to help with healthcare delivery across Africa, with not hundreds, but thousands of biking medical outreach workers, and by showing the people themselves how they can earn a living, help each other and go that last mile.

  On the one hand, I was working hard through Virgin Unite to try to help the developing world with some of the problems they face; and on the other hand, I was working hard at taking our space-launch programme forward. It was a strange but fascinating dichotomy. Virgin Galactic had caused a great stir and people had already signed up for our first flights. Then something remarkable happened in my personal journey to space.

  I was on Necker in November with Burt Rutan, the designer of the spaceship, and a group of our founding customers, who had come out to find details of the project directly from Burt’s own mouth. Will called from London to say he had just listened to Professor Stephen Hawking on the Today programme on Radio Four.

  Will said, ‘Stephen Hawking has just done an amazing interview, about why man needs to be in space – and why he still wants to go and why if possible he’d like Richard Branson to take him there!’

  I gathered all of our founding customers and Burt around a set of speakers and we linked up to the Internet and played Stephen Hawking’s podcast from the BBC site to them: ‘The human race must move to a planet beyond our solar system to protect the future of the species. Life could be wiped out by a nuclear disaster or an asteroid hitting the planet. Once we spread out into space and establish colonies, our future should be safe. There are no similar planets to Earth in our solar system so humans will have to go to another star. Current chemical and nuclear rockets are not adequate for taking colonists into space, as they would mean a journey of 50,000 years. I discount using warp drive to travel at the speed of light for taking people to a new outpost.