Get to know our people – Tony Burisch

Tony is the secretary at the Heidelberg Heritage Association for the past two years. HERAUT visited Tony to get to know him better.

Where did you grow up?

I was born in Salisbury, the old Rhodesia. My parents moved around a lot. So I grew up in Salisbury, Durban, Half Way House, Krugersdorp, Port Elizabeth, Cape Town, Scottburgh and Margate.

What did you do after school?

I went to the army for a year. Six months in Bloemfontein and then six months in Walvis Bay. I then ran my own business making plaster of Paris statues and selling them by the roadside. I then went into making plastic plaster moulds and selling them by mail order.

How long did you work before you retired?

I retired at 58. The pressure of customers and staff was getting to me. The economy was also not so good and sales had dropped.

Where did you travel to?

1n 2015, I went to Nepal with some friends on a 16-day tour and hike. On the last day, we experienced an earthquake that killed over 8 000 people. We were stuck at the airport in Kathmandu for two days before we could fly out. Our luggage only arrived home three weeks later.

In 2016, with three friends, we hired a car and did a road trip through Portugal.

In 2017, I went on a seven-day tour with the Bryanston Methodist Church to Israel and stayed an extra seven days on my own in Jerusalem.

In 2018, I did a three-month trip to the USA. A friend that used to stay in Heidelberg lent me a car and I travelled from New York to Los Angeles, then to Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, then to Redmond, Oregon. I stayed there a month and then took a train via Chicago back to New York. It was the best time I have ever had in my life. What an adventure.

What is your favourite food?

No real favourite food. I lived on McDonald burgers in the states.

Where is your favourite holiday destination?

I really enjoy Namibia. Especially the Namib Desert.

What do you do in your spare time?

I enjoy hiking. I belong to the Johannesburg Hiking Club.

What is the last book you read?

I am busy reading a book about the life of Louis Slabbert, the friend of Salmon van As, who was executed behind the old jail in Heidelberg.

How did your interest in heritage and history come about?

I used to travel a lot with my business and the old Boer War battlefields intrigued me. I have visited most of them. I then read a lot about the Boer War and even decided to do a tour guide course to learn more about South Africa.

We live in an interesting country with rich history and different colourful cultures.

Why is it important to recognise history and heritage?

How can we plan our future if we don’t know where we have come from? One must learn from the past.

What is your role as secretary at Heidelberg Heritage Association?

The secretary has been allocated the task of collating the history of Heidelberg into a database. From this database, I have been able to get the information for the Heritage Blue Plaques.

What is your message to the youth about history and heritage?

Take notice of your history and heritage now when you are young. Usually one only gets interested when you are older.

A lot of history has been lost as no one was interested in recording it at the time.