Knowledge is power

Johanna has a passion for helping people
Originally uploaded by damariasenne

Meet Johanna Mogane, a retired school teacher based in Johannesburg.

We met for the first time today at a small Wimpy restaurant across the road from the library in the city centre.

We were both alone, our tables next to each other, and she’s such a vivacious person we were soon chatting like old friends.

Johanna was at the library to research property law and the processes banks and the sherrif of the court have to go through to successfully evict an individual from a repossessed home.

One of her neighbours, who she says is disabled due to illness, faces eviction from her home.

And even though it’s not Johanna’s problem, she has decided to find out as much as she can about the process, so she can help if possible.

Johanna says she suspects the eviction is not legitimate - an unknown party showed up at the house claiming that the house was reposessed and he bought it on auction.

Johanna asks how the house could be repossessed when the current owner inherited the property, and has no loans against it.

The thing that struck me most about Johanna is her unquenchable thirst for knowledge, and her passion for helping others.

It’s such a lovely thing to meet someone who, in her autumn years, still has the energy and the heart to serve society. This is no tired, old lady who marked time to retirement.

“Knowledge is power and young people today have to know their rights and obligations to be able to get on in life,” she says.