Here at the Fields of Green for ALL office, we were shocked and devastated to hear of the death of a pioneer. A Cannabis enthusiast extraordinaire, a crazy character who lived and breathed the Plant, who knew about terpenes before any of us. He cultivated the dankest of the dank. His glass collection drew gasps from those who dab. His profound knowledge of everything – from the roots to the vapour – set Simon apart right from those very early days.
The year was 2012 and Jules & I were doing our very first presentation in Cape Town, on the rooftop of a backpackers in Long Street. We were super nervous before the event, and I thought a little puff of what was going around would help calm the jitters. Little did I know that that would be my first taste of Cape Town Cheese, and the cultivator was Mr Loxton himself. Jules was furious with me as I tried to pull myself together to go on stage. The MC on that day was a very funny man called Werner Weber – he had me glugging water to try to straighten up enough to speak. The Dagga Couple became firm friends with the grower and the comedian; Simon and Werner joined me as the first directors of Fields of Green for ALL when we registered our non-profit the following year.
Simon was a quiet activist who had his fair share of run-ins with the law. There was a deep understanding of the horrors of prohibition between us. In 2015 we travelled to Spain together, visiting our very first Cannabis Social Club – Betty Boop in Barcelona. Simon had visited there before and couldn’t wait to take us to our very first club. We knew as we got through the access control that we were home amongst our people, and that private clubs are the way to go in South Africa. Simon went on to establish a Betty Boop here in SA. It’s so great that he got to live his dream. That time in Barcelona we also went to our first Spannabis Expo and had our minds blown at the scale and potential for all things weed. I’ve become somewhat blasé about expos since then, but the first Spannabis was wow!
2023 is the Year of the OG. Cheers Si, an OG of note! Your passion would drive Jules mad sometimes – “Does he think of nothing else!?” – I can hear Jules say. We soldiered around in the wilderness in those early years, but I always knew that if I needed an answer to a technical question about anything to do with our beloved Plant, Si was the man.
To Matt, you have lost a bother and your mom has lost a son. We’re sending love.
We’re also thinking of the team at Betty Boop. May Simon’s legacy live on – thanks for trusting his crazy ideas!
RIP Simon.
Myrtle and the Fields of Green for ALL Team
RIP Simon. Much, much gratitude.