He has been described as unorthodox, enterprising, informal; a man with a dry sense of humor and extremely intelligent.
Anton van Zyl, minister of the ever expanding local Kuierkerk has not always had an easy life though. Adversities almost landed his marriage with Rene', a writer on the rocks.
The couple also had to deal with the pain of their son, Sean-Jacques, who, at the age of 15 months, became brain-damaged agter a virus attacked his brain, where after he spent two weeks in a coma in hospital. After that he had to learn to eat, walk and use his muscles all over again, but following many years of therapy and exercise at home, he was able to walk again and build up a small vocabulary.
(Photo: not part of the article: Anton, René, Michelle, Chantal and Sean in 2008)
Today Sean-Jacques is social, outgoing and friendly, and warmly welcomes visitors to the Kuierkerk.
He is part of the inspiration for The Kuierkidz Learning Centre for brain damaged children which opened its doors in August 2008 and has received overwhelming support from local residents.
The Van Zyl family previously lived in Pietersburg where Anton, a trained engineer, achieved a lot of success in the electrification construction industry. But due to a combination of circumstances, he lost contracts and by 1996 all his businesses were liquidated and he lost everything. "I was down and out," he explains.
These disasters led to depression and alcohol abuse, he says, but after attending a marriage enrichment course, both he and Rene' became converted and they moved to Hartbeespoort.
He was a middle aged man who had to support a family of five when he started to experience a calling to become a minister. He started his theological studies at the University of Pretoria at the age of 38 while his fellow-students were all 20 years younger! Six difficult years followed in which Anton earned a living by being a part time builder. René also had to support the family on her income from Puppet theatre presentations and as a freelance journalist. The couple also has two daughters, Michelle (now 16) and Chantal (13).
Once his studies were completed however, against everyone's expectations, he did not get appointed at his own church. He found himself without a congregation. But fortunately Anton has the heart of an entrepreneur. The popular Kuierkerk was established with the help and encouragement of a friend. Anton started this informal congregation at the Birdwood club house and within a few months it grew from a group of 16 to hundreds.
"Today I realise that the Lord had other plans for me."
The Kuierkerk church is unorthodox and has a unique view of the church and baptism and buries anyone who needs the service. Membership does not exist and the services are attended among others by people who do not belong to a church and also by people looking for something informal and new, that they do not find at their own place of worship. The church does not focus on owning a building but rather uses its energy to reach out to the community, for instance squatter camps, soup kitchens, helping the elderly and cleaning up around the dam.
Anton believes that faith should be exercised in a practical way.
As far as the Kuierkidz learning centre is concerned, Anton was approached by parents of Hartbeespoort whose children had to be transported to Brits or Pretoria for the necessary schooling. They wanted to start a school. Since then they never looked back. The Kuierkidz learning centre was started. It is run by parents who raise extra funds for salaries and running expences. The support of the community is heart-warming.
(End of article. Shortened.)
The bottomline, Anton says: We are here to make a difference in this world, by helping people and to be a blessing for all mankind, this includes being a blessing to the environment. We are here like Jesus, not to condemn the world but to be a blessing. 
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