Faith & Community
Peerless
Jairos Jiri
1921 – 1982
Started disability work in Zimbabwe out of his own pocket, in 1940
Peerless is level 1 of 4 in the Zimbabwe Hall of Fame: changed the field itself. Tell the country's story without them and the story breaks. See how the levels work.
Why they are here
He began taking in disabled people in 1940 with nothing but his own labour and wages, and built it into the association that still carries his name. Declared a national hero; his family buried him at home in Bikita instead.
Jairos Jiri founded the Jairos Jiri Association for Disabled People in 1940, beginning with his own labour and his own money, at a time when there was no provision of any kind for disabled people in colonial Rhodesia.
He is regarded as the founder of disability work in the country, and the association became the largest organisation of its kind in Zimbabwe, running schools, training centres and rehabilitation services. He was granted national hero status on his death in 1982, though his family chose to bury him at his rural home in Bikita rather than at Heroes' Acre in Harare.
He is regarded as the founder of disability work in the country, and the association became the largest organisation of its kind in Zimbabwe, running schools, training centres and rehabilitation services. He was granted national hero status on his death in 1982, though his family chose to bury him at his rural home in Bikita rather than at Heroes' Acre in Harare.
- Wikipedia — Jairos Jiri
- Zimbabwe Field Guide — Jairos Jiri Association: the legacy of Zimbabwe's greatest philanthropist
- Africa Social Work & Development Network — Jairos Jiri (1921–1982)
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