“Make it happen,” is Denis Brandjes’s motto, and one that he is bringing to the Rotary Club of Hermanus (RCH) as its newly-inducted president. He has a deep commitment to community empowerment and intends to use his extensive background in education and technology to help improve the greater Hermanus area.
“My passion is working with projects to empower communities,” he said about his vision for his term, which runs until July 2026. “I will do whatever I can to enrich this community and maximise its resour- ces for good.” As president he oversees the work of the Club’s 40 plus members and 11 committees, which run projects ranging from specialised eye care, including cataract operations, to Pebbles Skills Development Centre and Camphill Village and School. Brandjes’s background is in Education and supporting education is one of the main pillars of Rotary International (RI), the organisation of which the club is part. The Hermanus club is committed to Early Childhood Development (ECD) and is undertaking the revitalisation of Woelwaters Crèche in Mount Pleasant. A similar project in Hawston last year successfully restored Sonstraaltjies Crèche.
Brandjes is enthusiastic about legacy projects, long-term commitments that leave a lasting impact such as Rotary Way, the Hermanus Cliff Path and the renovation of the viewing deck at Swallow Park, to be known as Rotary View.
A graduate of the former Johannesburg College of Education, he taught at Parktown Boys High School in Johannesburg before becoming involved in Information and Communication Technology and its application to educational support. He was the first executive director of SchoolNet South Africa, a non-profit at the forefront of digital education and teacher development. A relative newcomer to the Hermanus area, Brandjes hails from Benoni, where he was inducted into the Rotary Club of Benoni Aurora in 2010 and became president in 2014. Brandjes said he thought long and hard before joining Rotary. “I was seeking an organisation that could multiply my efforts many times over,” he says. And that is Rotary in a nutshell.
The individual clubs, of which there are more than 46 000 internationally, operate independently but are affiliated with Rotary International. The clubs are eligible for donations from RI and other member clubs. Much of the efforts of the more than 1.4 million members is devoted to fundraising, always with the motto Service above Self.
The Bargain Box, a beloved second-hand shop in town, is the major fundraiser and operates with the active participation of the community as well as Rotarians.
Brandjes has transitioned into the real estate profession and presently operates through RE/MAX Wine and Whales in Hermanus, a move that enables him to allocate his time to the multitude of club activities. His wife, Samantha, is a public relations professional who also is devoted to service and runs a sports team foundation. She recently knitted 40 beanies for the children at Pebbles. RCH has an active Knitting for Love project, which works with the community to knit beanies, sweaters and blankets for babies and kiddies. Rotary Club members are at work on Hermanus Christmas Carols, an annual Nativity event and fundraiser which has involved the community since 1968.
