In this monthly series, we hand over the blog platform to IAM’s staff to share their own journeys, stories, and insights in their own words. Though our journeys are all unique and individual, many of us share common challenges and dilemmas as we simply attempt to lead our lives as people of faith while loving whom we love.
I was born in Namaqualand and grew up in Klawer on a farm near town. I was the eldest of four children – I have one sister and two brothers. We still have a very close relationship and visit one another very often. This close relationship stems from how our parents raised us., They were very humble and sincere people. I think they would have been very thankful to experience our relationship as siblings it if they were still alive. They taught us everything we need to know to face life with all its challenges and encouraged us to study further after school.
I matriculated from Paarl Gymnasium, and then studied a B.Comm HED at the University of Stellenbosch. Those were wonderful carefree days – all we had to do was pass at school every year. True to my nature, I was a very dedicated student. In 1980 I took up my first teaching post in Britstown in the Karoo. The first day I arrived there, I met another new teacher, Ben Greyling, who became my husband within a year! We stayed there for three years after which we both took up posts in Cradock in the Eastern Cape.
The 19 years we lived in Cradock were some of the best years of our lives. We made friends for life, our three children were born there, and we were very happy at Cradock High School as the rural environment suited all of us very well. I was very involved in coaching sport, particularly netball and tennis, which took up most of my time. I myself played social tennis, which I enjoyed tremendously. I also became involved in the finances of the school. This became one of my favourite extra-mural activities.
In 2002 we moved to Paarl, where both of us continued our teaching careers at Boland Agricultural High School. I remained an accounting teacher. Our children attended local schools and made a success of their tertiary careers. Two of them decided to follow in my footsteps and studied for Bachelor of Accounting degrees. One became a CA and the other one mastered in Logistics. The youngest one became a teacher in Life Sciences.
We were very happy at Boland Agricultural School as we stayed on the farm and experienced farm life daily. My husband was Master in charge of the hostel, where 350 boys stayed during the week. There were only boys in the school, and I loved teaching them. They had no-nonsense and normally liked my disciplinary way of teaching – what is wrong, is wrong and what is right, is right. I also loved passing down the values my father used to teach us when we were younger, and they liked it because they believed that I was always striving to prepare them for life after school.
I encouraged the boys to play tennis and began to organise two annual school tennis tournaments. These were one of the highlights on the school calendar. I also took over all the finances of the school and the hostel and in the end, the farming part of the school. Initially, I did not realise how much I loved this part of my job. Eventually, it took up most of my time and I took much pride in presenting the annual financial statements to the Governing Body. I decided to retire earlier than I needed to, and we moved to Somerset West at the end of 2021.
My road with IAM started in January 2022 as the Assistant Financial Administrator. I have only been with IAM for a short period of time, but I believed that this was meant to be. The team made me feel welcome from the very first day. As I am a meticulous observer, I noticed very soon that the staff is dedicated to what they do as well as to what they believe. This warms my heart as I believe that each of us is created uniquely and that Jesus loves all of us dearly. I am looking forward to a long and devoted journey with IAM.
