Nelson Mandela: Hamilton remembers great South African leader

In Hamilton, news of Nelson Mandelas death was met with sadness but also slight sense of relief.

We held him alive with our prayers for so long, said Albert Kittoe, a Ghanian-Canadian who was stopping by his friends alteration store when he heard the news.

Mandela diedat home at the age of 95 on Thursday, South Africa President Jacob Zuma announced Thursday. The anti-apartheid leader had been seriously ill with a lung infection for months, something Kittoe says was hard to watch.

No one wants to let a good thing go, he said, adding in recent months he'd questioned Mandela's quality of life.

Mayor Bob Bratina said in an email he remembers Mandela as a world-changer, likening him to others like Muhammad Ali, Martin Luther King and Mother Teresa.

So many of us were inspired by the sacrifices they made for their ideals, Bratina wrote.

It shaped the lives and outlooks of many of my generation.

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Community organizer EvelynMyriesaid plans are in the works to host a memorial service for Mandela at the Stewart Memorial Church, on John St., one of the oldest black churches in the country.Myriesaid the church is also considering hosting a live viewing of Mandelas state funeral.

Tonight, though,Myrie is joining those mourning Mandela. Its very emotional for us right now its just the passing of an era, she said.

She said Mandelas ability to lead, and work together with white people after his imprisonment has served as an inspiration for her own work.

Its really about were all in this together, she said.

'Time to cry'

At a Jackson Square beauty store, a Zimbabwean-South African woman named Hazel said many people would need time to cry, tonight.

Like Kittoe, Hazel said she was OK to see Mandela she affectionately calls him Madiba, as many do go, even though he was one of her heroes.

Im happy he was able to see the freedom of black people, she said.

Behind Hazel, heryoung boy Mandel, who often gets called Mandela by mistake, swivels on a chair. Hazel said she wont teach him about Madiba yet (hes too young) but that hell eventually learn the story.

For Kittoe, Mandela was one of two strong political leaders he looked up to. In school, he learned about Ghanas Kwame Nkrumah, who led his country to independence in 1957. Years later, he marvelled at Mandelas strength, as he overcame the tortures of prison at Robben Island and became leader.

He wouldnt be broken, Kittoe said.

And for that,no ones going to forget him.