Posts Tagged ‘Friends’

Posted on September 30, 2008 - by Justin Hartman

The end of an era

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Today is my last day at Avusa iLab. At the beginning of September we announced that MIH Print Africa had acquired a stake in Afrigator - a project I’ve been working on since early 2007 - and as a result I’ve been finishing up work and preparing for the big move down to Cape Town.

Making the decision to leave was simple to make in that Afrigator is a passion of mine and I’ve now been given the opportunity to work on my passion full time but on the flip-side it was also extremely difficult. Over the last 14 months I’ve built up very special relationships with Colin, Gregor, Ian and Robin and we’ve grown very close as a team and as a friends.

Together I believe we have provided immense value to the company and I know that I am leaving the iLab in very capable and safe hands. I will now have the opportunity to sit back and watch what the guys produce over the coming months and I look forward to seeing them assist in helping the company reach its goals and objectives.

All I can say is that they will all be sorely missed.

Moving to Cape Town is something I and my family welcome and are looking forward to and while we’ll all miss our family and friends this move will be a life-changing experience for us all. As a parent I couldn’t ask for more than to bring my kids up in a city that has so much to offer and our quality of life is going to improve dramatically as a result.

Packing is now well on its way and on Sunday morning we move into our new home in Claremont. I don’t think we can yet quantify what this all means but I’ll post my experiences on the blog in the coming days and weeks.

Wish us all luck.

Posted on November 13, 2007 - by Justin Hartman

Sometimes I Hate South Africa

Last Friday morning Rian Kerkhof (53) died in hospital after being robbed earlier that Thursday evening. Rian was a good family friend and news of his murder only made its way to our household early yesterday evening.

Rian was shot in the right side of his body and was then tied to his daughter while the four scum rummaged through his fridge, ate some dinner, cleaned his cottage out and left him there to die. His daughter Helene was visiting him from Thailand and was beaten and taunted all the while watching her father slip away.

“I looked forward to returning to South Africa, but I cannot live in a place where such pigs are terrorising the community. Nobody is safe. It’s not enough to rob. They want to kill.” — Helene Kerkhof (21)

Rian used to own a Sneakers store in Cape Town before he lost his business and it was during this time that he gave me my very first pair of Nike shoes at age 13 and I will always remember him for this - he was my hero.

After he lost his business Rian struggled through the years and I really felt for the man as no human being should ever go through the hardships he went through. The fact that he was so brutally murdered just sickens me to the stomach and this whole incident just makes me furious.

I can’t help but feel absolutely powerless when I witness the events that take place in South Africa. I love my country, have contributed on occasion to SA Rocks to prove my cause and have even tried to make a small difference with my localised web applications yet at moments like these I just want to run far far away.

When is this lack of respect for life ever going to change? We’re a savage nation that cares nothing for the value of life and I’m struggling to come to terms with these brutal murders that take place every day in this country.

I am often fearful for the safety of my family but when it hits home like this I am completely hopeless.

My deepest condolences go out to Rian’s wife and four children - words can not describe the sadness I feel for them right now…

Posted on September 15, 2007 - by Justin Hartman

September 15 remains a sad day for me

I’ve been debating whether or not to blog about this issue as it’s a very sensitive topic for me yet despite my reluctance I’ve decided it’s important to write about this day and remember.

Four years today, almost to the hour, my best friend passed away. It is a moment in my life that I can honestly never forget and I have no doubt it will haunt me till the day I die. The difference today is that instead of raw emotion, that has normally been present in reliving this day, I find myself remembering him for what he was and what we had. I still feel saddened by his untimely death but today I thank God for the experiences we shared together.

Together we owned a business, we moved out of home, we became DJ’s and we went through some rough emotional times. My friendship with him was one that I will most likely never experience again and in the four years since his death I still don’t have a relationship that can come close to comparing.

The difficulty in all of this for me is the loneliness. I have a wonderful family, caring friends and a support structure that I care deeply about but ultimately I still feel very lost without him. I suppose that time will heal this.

A few days before his death we found ourselves driving around through the Johannesburg CBD doing a delivery for a client and he played me the song Don’t Give Up by Peter Gabriel. We had often listened to music together as we had very similar interests but this was one of those moments that I knew I’d remember for a long time.

Without realising it this one would be our last moment together and I’d like to share it with you.

[audio:dont_give_up.mp3]