{"id":149104,"date":"2025-04-20T06:41:45","date_gmt":"2025-04-20T04:41:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.goodthingsguy.com\/?p=149104"},"modified":"2025-05-01T04:20:29","modified_gmt":"2025-05-01T02:20:29","slug":"the-83-year-old-filling-pennington-potholes-and-restoring-hope-in-his-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goodthingsguy.com\/people\/the-83-year-old-filling-pennington-potholes-and-restoring-hope-in-his-community\/","title":{"rendered":"The 83-Year-Old Filling Potholes and Restoring Hope in His Community"},"content":{"rendered":"
I met an 83-year-old man in Pennington who\u2019s been fixing potholes for nearly 12 years… using his own money, his maroon bakkie and a whole lot of heart.<\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n
South Coast, South Africa (20 April 2025)<\/em> – Yesterday, I met a local hero in a place I had never been before, Pennington.<\/p>\n
Pennington is a small, sun-drenched coastal village along the south coast where time slows down, the waves greet you first and all the dogs seem to know each other by name (or butt sniffs). It\u2019s the kind of place where the milkshake at the corner caf\u00e9 still comes with a paper straw (not because of climate change but because that’s how they’ve done it since the 80s) and where everyone seems to genuinely care about everyone else.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s heart here. And a whole lot of community.<\/p>\n
But even in a place this charming, potholes don\u2019t fix themselves.<\/p>\n
Call it serendiptious. Or maybe fortuitous. Or perhaps just meant-to-be. But on the way to the beach, I crossed paths with an 83-year-old man named Tony Hoggins\u2026 a legend with a maroon bakkie who\u2019s been quietly fixing the town\u2019s potholes for over a decade.<\/p>\n
Let that sink in.<\/p>\n
Eleven and a half years.<\/p>\n
Of mixing cement. Of patching holes. Of taking matters into his own hands because, as he puts it: \u201cNo one else is going to fix it.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
I\u2019d come down to visit my parents, who\u2019ve recently bought a property in Pennington with plans to eventually retire here. Drawn to the peace, the people and the promise of a gentler kind of life. I expected sea air, slow days and perhaps a lazy walk on the beach. What I didn\u2019t expect\u2026 was to be reminded just how extraordinary ordinary people can be.<\/p>\n
Tony is well-known around here. Everyone has a story. Some have seen him stop mid-errand to patch a hole. Others have helped him mix a bit of cement. Kids wave when they spot his maroon bakkie ambling through town. And more than a few locals have quietly left donations, slipped into his hand at the caf\u00e9, or passed through a car window, because they know he won\u2019t ask… but they also know he won\u2019t stop.<\/p>\nTony Hoggins and his maroon bakkie | Photo Credit: Good Things Guy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
He does this with his own money. Every tool. Every mix. Every patch.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not a funded project. It\u2019s not backed by a municipality. It\u2019s just Tony, his bakkie and a sense of duty to the place he calls home.<\/p>\n
He told me it\u2019s never been about recognition. He\u2019s not trying to be a hero. He just saw something broken and decided to be the kind of person who tries to fix it. When I asked him what message he had for the rest of South Africa, he paused, like he didn\u2019t want to preach, and then said something so profound: \u201cIf everybody did their little part in front of their own homes, or in their streets, or communities, then South Africa would be a very different place.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Simple. But powerful.<\/p>\n
Because we all know the truth, many parts of South Africa are struggling. Infrastructure is crumbling. Especially in smaller towns. Years of corruption and mismanagement have left roads full of holes and hearts full of frustration. It\u2019s easy to feel hopeless. To believe that no one cares.<\/p>\n
To throw your hands in the air and say, \u201cWell, it\u2019s not my job.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
But stories like Tony\u2019s shift that narrative. They remind us that change doesn\u2019t always come from the top. Sometimes, it starts at the bottom of a pothole.<\/p>\n
![\"Tony](\"https:\/\/www.goodthingsguy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/img-7206.jpg\")
![\"Tony](\"https:\/\/www.goodthingsguy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/img-7069.jpg\")