About Me

My life has been covered by God's grace and there is no way I can deny it. I did not have big dreams or plans as a young man. Life was too overwhelming and I was more angry, troubled and frustrated than I was excited. In fact sometimes I wished that I never entered this world or that I would exit this world at an early age. God changed my life, through His still small voice, when I was 14 years old. I had the most profound revelation that changed my outlook on life. I was filled with so much hope and vision that it still sustains me till today. I became quite disciplined and focused and did well in my school subjects. I did Mathematics, Accounting, Economics, Business Economics, Afrikaans and English. I chose these subjects because the clever kids in my class chose them, not because I wanted to. Everyone wanted to become a Chartered Accountant, so I thought maybe I should become one too. 

At university I enrolled for B.Com Accounting at UWC, only to discover I do not like the B.Com subjects that much. I was never into business, but more into Science. Unfortunately I chose commerce subjects at school, so I could not do B.Sc. At university, the only subjects I liked in B.Com, was Statistics and Economics. Statistics was my way to get into the adventures of scientific thinking. I chose to major in Statistics because it was the only subject I liked. Strangely enough, I did not know a lot about the applications until my postgraduate studies at Stellenbosch University. So, I did Statistics because it was the only subject that I liked as a undergraduate and I stuck with Statistics because it is the most beautiful subject in terms of its theory, applications and computations. It is the career that sort of became my choice. It is a difficult career path, but also the most rewarding for me. It is alive and the possibilities are endless. The applications of Statistics affects our lives every day. It allows us to understand the world in ways that seem almost magical.

I was born in George, Blanco in South Africa on 15 May 1977. I obtained my school education from Kretzenshope primary school (in Blanco) and George secondary school (in Rosemoor). My first job was at HomeChoice, where I worked for seven months in the marketing department. My second job was at the Agricultural Research Council - South Africa, where I worked for three years as an assistant biometrician in Stellenbosch. I am currently a senior lecturer in Statistics at Stellenbosch University since 2003.

I grew up in church, with bible teachings and biblical principles. I believe that there is a God, that He is the creator of all things, that He is loving, generous, kind and caring, that He is holy, powerful and almighty. I believe that God controls the universe, but He allows humans to partner with Him through covenant relationship. He has predestined a life for us, but we can choose whether we want to live it His way or not. I believe that Jesus Christ (Yeshua Messiah) is the son of God and He died on the cross for my sins. My faith in His life and resurrection from death keeps me going day after day. I am a sinner, but my faith in Him destroyed the bondage that sin kept me in. I believe that one day He will return to this earth to destroy sin completely and reign forever.

To be honest, education and church changed my life. Church and education will always be a priority to me because it involves God and people. It is the two places where I want to serve until the end.

• Die Burger 1994a, 1994b   

• George Herold 1997, 2003, 2008

• Kretzenshope paper 2003   

• Radio interview with Mr Matthew Packard on the courses offered in the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science - Matie FM, in 2007.

• Radio interview on mentorship with Mr Roger Jacobs for the program Schools hour -  Eden FM, on 2 October 2019, 19:00.