Henning-John, a hero for the physically challenged
Mr Meyer is a vocal advocator for equality between physically challenged and non-physically challenged people
Armed with a passion to ensure that everyone is treated equally, Henning-John Meyer is committed to making a difference among physically challenged individuals.
A qualified physiotherapist, Mr Meyer has been based at Pro Nobis School from 2010 and in 2012 became a member of the Association for the Physically Challenged (APC). In January this year, Mr Meyer was selected as the KZN Co-ordinator of Classifiers. A classifier’s job is to allow for fair competition between people with different types of disabilities.
The athletes are examined by classifiers and assigned to a class, depending on their ability and the advantage or disadvantage it could pose during a certain sport. Mr Meyer is the only qualified medical classifier for athletics in KZN.
As the Co-ordinator of Classifiers, though, he’s hoping to grow these numbers and bring KZN up to the standards of Gauteng, Western Province and Free State, the leaders in classification.
But it’s not just equality among disabled athletes that Mr Meyer is passionate about, he’s also a vocal advocator for equality between physically challenged and non-physically challenged people.
“Any person with a disability should be included in sports and all aspects of the community,” he said.
Advocating and educating are two things that Mr Meyer does at home, school and is his daily encounters with people. While recently helping out at Sarel Cilliers, his passion rubbed off on learners and the school has been a keen supporter of the APC’s Wheelchair race.
“The things we take for granted are the things that disabled people deal with on a daily basis. Is it fair to then penalize them further for something that isn’t their fault?”
While Mr Meyer has seen people’s views on disabled persons change from one of pity to compassion, he still feels that more can be done and it begins with each person changing their mindset. Through his actions, Mr Meyer hopes that more people will change their mindsets.
“Every day is worth it when you see the smiles and know you’re making a difference.”
Motivated by his family, who he hopes to be an example for, Mr Meyer continues to motivate and inspire others. He thanked his fellow staff members at Pro Nobis and those at the APC for assisting him on this journey as he aims to make a difference in the lives of the disabled.
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