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FAMILY and friends are still reeling with shock after the senseless and brutal murder of Dr Theodore Lluwellyn Manuel.

Manuel (41) of Burwood Walk, Crawford, was found in his home on Thursday, 17 January at around 17:50. He had apparently been beaten to death, his head covered with a towel and his body covered with cardboard.

According to police statements, there were no signs of forced entry, but the motive appears to be robbery. His television, DVD player and car were all missing from his home.

Friends and family say Manuel, affectionately known as "Vallen", was a well-known and respected man across the city because of his work and achievements.

He taught at Athlone High School while studying part time. He played an integral role in the Working on Water project and later in the national and regional Department of Water Works.

Manuel grew up in Field Crescent, Athlone, with his Aunt Elizabeth "Lilly" Manuel.

"He was always very fond of nature and he was a soccer player until his accident," says Aunty Lilly.

When he was 12 years old, he tripped over a fence at Kewtown baths and injured his spine.

He was paralysed from the waist down, and his hands were affected too.

But even though he was paralysed, he learned to walk with crutches a few years later.

"But through all of that, he remained an A student," Aunty Lilly remembers.

Manuel's sister, Carenza Lewis, says he never let his disability stand in the way of anything.

"In his mind, he wasn't disabled. He never asked for anything extra or preferential treatment," Lewis says.

She says his passion had always been nature, and a highlight for not only the family, but for the University of Cape Town, was when he obtained his doctorate degree in botany in June 2006.

"Because he couldn't manage the steps, everyone on the stage came down to cap him," says Lewis.

His supervisor for his PhD, Professor Tim Hoffman, says the death of the award winning Manuel is a loss to the entire botany department, and they are all in mourning.   Manuel received the Silver Award from Cape Project for his contribution to conservation.

"He was just embarking on a new career, and the world was just beginning to open up to him. It's a tragedy to the field of botany," Hoffman says.

His sister spoke of how his work was a very big part of his life, and nothing less than perfection was good enough.

But family time was also of the utmost importance to him. A clearly distraught and tearful Lewis describes how he would always visit her, have a little something to eat, then doze off on her green leather couch.

"I can still see him sitting there," she cries.

While having a daughter of his own, he was very fond of Lewis's two boys.

"He was an inspiration to them. He always encouraged them ? and me, too ? to study hard.

"He knew how important education was, and wanted us to succeed," Lewis says.

Charl Paulse, a former student of Manuel at Ned Doman High School in Athlone, attests to the effect Manuel had on people's lives.

He says Manuel was always available to tutor students in the fields of Mathematics, Science and Biology.

"He was a leader in so many ways. He just didn't deserve this," says an emotional Paulse after holding Manuel's signature brown leather satchel.

He says whenever he saw the leather satchel, he knew Manuel was around.

Howard Mackrill, Athlone High School principal, says he is devastated at the news.

"For a person who went through so much to achieve what he did, then to die this way, is an absolute tragedy," Mackrill says.

He reinforces the family's description of Manuel as a humble man.

"He was always looking out for the best interests of the children, in Athlone and elsewhere.

"His death is a loss to the entire community," Mackrill says.

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