My name is Dr. Igor Scheurkogel, married to Ting Chun Huang (Benny for short) almost two years, but after the lockdown it will be officially ten years. I am a person that believes and tries new things all the time to my husband’s despair.
Like this homemade beer making which I have made four different flavours and alcohol levels (and morning after headaches just increasing) during the lockdown, as adult beverages are not seen as essential products, but we are allow to drink soft drinks with no health-value adding ingredient where one glass of red wine is like being at the gym for 30 minutes? I mean like come-on.
Wait let me get back to my reason of writing this letter/expression/blog post. My name is Dr. Igor Scheurkogel, married to Ting Chun Huang (Benny for short) almost two years, but after the lockdown it will be officially ten years. We met in Taiwan in 2014 through dha-da HORNET (yeah, some meat market apps do lead to real love haha). If ever opposites attract, we would have nailed the study 100%. For example, for Benny sports is mid evil torture; where I am a gym and race addict. Being spontaneous: Benny: WHY? – Igor: You live once, Benny: Ya and you die once too. Ag nee vrek I got side tracked again, but the lockdown has given me and Benny to spend more time together because in the six years we have known each other, the first two weeks were the most time we spent together continuously, ever, because of the work I do.
Even though politics are what pays the bills in our house, my passion is civil society. Motivating people to get involved, to help others help themselves not just by donating or caring for a cause, but also to pass on skills and experience. When I launched The Power of One (My NPO) in 2013, I never thought that it would be something that takes so much space of my daily life. But it started before I had The Warehouse Art Gallery in Taiwan (the first foreign owned art gallery), where we raised funds for the Haiti and Japan earthquakes which kinda were the sun and water to my seed of civil service.
The Power of One evolved from being a mindset of ONE person making a change to a movement that is taking my local municipality by storm. We started in 2018 fixing potholes (2014-2018 I was in Taiwan completing my PhD), doing clean ups and giving dignity pack to high school girls to make sure they stay in school. Now it has started to evolve into a network of people wanting to be active citizens and make a difference. We were able to connect with religious groups, cultural, and community groups to make a difference. And this collective action is why we are able to feed 1500+ people on a weekly basis during the lockdown here in the Goldfields.
So, with all that I have said above, NEVER underestimate that ONE thought, word, or act of human kindness you show to a fellow human being, as that would be just that moment you change a person’s life.
Dr. Igor Scheurkogel
#BeTheChange
Cell: +27 73 860 3698 Like Us on Facebook
Registered South African Non-Profit Organisations
The Power of One – NPO 129-440
Active Power – NPO 214-798
Eco Art Power – NPO 214-882
Igor Scheurkogel Foundation – NPO 231-997
