After his son Keenan was killed in the Lavender Hill shooting, Mark Nicholson is preparing to walk 100km in memory of him and other victims of gun violence on the Cape Flats.
Five people died and three were wounded when gunmen opened fire at a gathering in Ponta Court on October 24, 2026.
Nicholson's son, Keenan, was among five people killed when gunmen stormed the house and opened fire while family and friends were gathered for a braai.
Four men and a woman, aged between 21 and 33, were killed in the attack, while another man and two women were wounded and taken to a medical facility for treatment.
Western Cape police said an investigation into the incident is ongoing.
For Nicholson, the evening remains a devastating blur of panic, disbelief and a father's desperate search for his child.
He said a child had come running to alert him that gunshots had been fired at a neighbouring court in Ponta Court just after 6 pm.
The father said he rushed out as he knew his son was there.
The gathering was also a farewell for Keenan, who did electrical work, and was preparing to leave for a church commitment for a few months.
A father’s desperate search for his son
"When I got there, the first thing I saw was a gentleman lying in the living room. Part of his head was also shot away," he recalled.
As he made his way through the kitchen, he said he found his son lying face down, in a pool of blood.
"I just turned him around, tried to check his pulse, and there was no movement. There was a pile of blood under his feet. Then I knew he had passed away," Nicholson said.
After laying his son to rest, Nicholson said the tragedy has strengthened his resolve to speak out against gun violence.
Together with his wife Shireen, he is planning a three-day, 100km memorial walk, starting near their home and ending at a cemetery near Moorreesburg.
They are also considering stopping in Atlantis to pay tribute to another victim of gun violence.
A 100km walk against gun violence
The walk is expected to begin on November 22 and end on 25 November, which marks just over a month since Keenan's death.
"My wife has decided she's going to take the walk with me. It is in memory of my son Keenan, but also a campaign to highlight gun violence in our society and how the justice system fails us on the Cape Flats," he said.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Novela Potelwa said the investigation into the matter is ongoing.
“The incident is believed to be linked to gang violence. No arrests have been made yet. AGU detectives are hard at work in search of the perpetrators of the act. Police remain on high alert in the area,” Potelwa said.
Police probe possible gang link
Portfolio Committee on Police chairperson Ian Cameron said gangs needed to face sustained and lawful pressure from police.
"We need to not even give them space to breathe. We must also make sure that we somehow intervene with regard to the constant supply of firearms. At the moment, we keep hearing about a gun being seized or an arrest being made of a suspect with a gun. But we hardly ever see a conviction," Cameron said.
"We need to understand where these firearms are coming from, because just like we want to saturate an area with police, they are saturating areas with illicit firearms."
Pastor Mark Schrikker of Our Lives Matter Community Action Group said communities could no longer afford to respond to violence only after lives had been lost.
"We cannot continue burying our young people, comforting grieving mothers and conducting prayer services without confronting the circumstances that contribute to this ongoing destruction," he said.
"Every child deserves to grow up without fear. Every mother deserves the peace of knowing her child can return home safely," Schrikker said.