Our newest club member has certainly had his share of challenges - we look forward to getting to know him better and enjoying his company as he continues his Rotary journey with us.
Antz grew up in Johannesburg South Africa. He was an active young chap with a keen interest in sports and outdoor activities – that was until, at the age of 12, he woke up during the night in a delirious state. It took some time for the doctors to figure out what was going on but eventually he was diagnosed with rheumatic fever. By this time, the disease had inflicted devastating damage to his heart, which left him struggling just to climb stairs.
Antz was able to have major heart surgery at the age of 19 which helped to get him back to some semblance of health, but his heart would never fully recover. But to Antz, this gave him even more determination to set major challenges and look to overcome them. He set a goal of climbing Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. He trained for months and months, and he successfully conquered the mountain even through altitude sickness. A major achievement and with that behind him Antz knew he could do anything he set his mind to.
After completing his degree and working for a US multinational for many years, running their IT and HR departments, in 1999 he moved to New Zealand. He continued his education and gained a Masters degree in Information Management, as well as Certified Transformational Coaching and now has his own business, Coaching Savvy, coaching and training.
Antz met Steve Lawton at Toastmasters, and then joined Wellington South Rotary. He had to give up Rotary when work travel became too busy but has come back to Rotary to continue his service to community.
Anzt is married to Jacinta and they have a son, Jed who is married to Constanze with their daughter Lani and they live in Germany.