Adrian Suskin
UPS Pilot & Zimkids Trustee- Career: Pilot, United Parcel Service (UPS)
- Born: Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
- Role: Board of Trustees, Zimkids
- Legacy: The Adrian Suskin Center for ZimKids
Adrian's Story
In 2010, the Zimkids goal was to build a safety net for orphans with educational and vocational opportunities, recreation, food and medical care. That wasn't easy while operating out of a single primary school classroom. Dennis dreamed of building a Center and even had plans and a plot of land given by the city. But operating on a tiny budget, he had no way to realize those dreams.
Then, Adrian Suskin, a pilot for UPS who was born in Zimbabwe, swooped in.
Recently diagnosed with cancer, Adrian refused to wallow in self-pity. Instead, he decided to give back to the city where he'd grown up. Introduced to Dennis by his sister Philippa, between chemo treatments, Adrian spent time playing with the Zimkids, taking them out for pizza, becoming part of the family. Finally, he joined the board of Trustees and got busy raising money.
His friends, family and pilots' union, filled the building fund. Adrian lived long enough to see the center completed and filled with children. Adrian died in 2013 just 2 years after completion.
Career
Adrian Suskin was a pilot for UPS, born and raised in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, before returning to give back to the city where he grew up.
Role at Zimkids
Introduced to founder Dennis Gaboury by his sister Philippa, Adrian joined the Zimkids board of Trustees and got busy raising money for the Center.
The Center He Built
After operating out of the yard of a neighborhood woman and then the local primary school, in 2011 our Council of Elders broke ground on a permanent home, built brick by brick by six of our own teenage members, trained on the job in construction skills they still use today.
In Memoriam
The Center, named the Adrian Suskin Center in honor of a longtime supporter, now includes an educational resource center with a kitchen, clinic and library; a computer training center; a welding area; a garden and greenhouse with drip irrigation; a poultry area; an obstacle course designed and built by the orphans themselves; a playground; and sports fields.
Continue Adrian's Legacy
Adrian's generosity and fundraising built a permanent home for hundreds of orphans in Pumula North. You can help carry his legacy forward.