Africa-Press – Botswana. It is with a heavy heart and a wealth of fond memories that I say farewell to my dear friend and brother, Gerhardus Hattie Jansen, whom I affectionately called Oom Jay.
Our story began in the halls of Kgari Sechele Secondary School (KSII) in 1974. I was a wide-eyed, “greenhorn” Form 1 student, and Oom Jay was part of a legendary group — the school’s very first Form IV class. To us, he and his classmates were giants, navigating a world we were just beginning to understand.
In those days, I knew of him long before I knew him. He was a standout athlete on the school’s highly competitive softball team, a figure we younger students admired from a respectful distance. Our paths would properly cross years later, in 1985, as a final year student at the University of Botswana, when I returned to our alma mater for my teaching practice. There, the senior student I had once looked up to became my mentor, taking me under his wing without a second thought.
We taught in the same department, and I was immediately struck by the passion and commitment Oom Jay brought to his work. He wasn’t just a teacher of Geography and Social Studies, he was a guardian of his students’ futures. Hailing from Molepolole, he knew the families and the challenges his students faced. I will always remember how he would personally seek out those who had dropped out, going to their homes to convince parents to send their bright children back to school. Many of the successful leaders in our community today owe their start to his unwavering belief in them.
Our professional relationship blossomed into a deep and enduring friendship. After I joined KSII permanently, he taught me the ropes with patience and good humour. He was a dedicated family man, and I was deeply honoured to be welcomed into his home for countless gatherings, celebrating the weddings of his sons, Blondie and Gregory, and sharing in the joy of his wonderful family. His wife, Toro, his pillar of strength, and their children — Blondie, Gregory, Wayne, and Amanda — were his greatest pride. He raised a beautiful, responsible family, a testament to the wonderful man he was.
Oom Jay’s career was marked by quiet excellence. A member of the first generation of Batswana graduate teachers, he was a capable and inspiring educator, producing some of the best academic results in the country. While we all felt he had even more to give at a national level, he poured his entire heart into his role, eventually retiring as the deputy headmaster of Mphuthe Community Junior Secondary School.
The last time I saw him was at a family function in August. He was, as always, in good spirits, charming, and thoughtful — reassuring me as one of the organizers that he and his family were perfectly fine. We laughed about how well he had preserved himself, looking younger than his years. I left that day thinking we would soon catch up properly, a visit I now will never have.
Farewell, to my friend and brother. His legacy is not just in the institutions he served, but in the countless lives he touched with his kindness, dedication, and generous spirit. Oom Jay will be profoundly missed, but never forgotten.
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