Ons wil wilskrag, spierkrag opbou,
ons wil werk en dien en koershou –
Ons die jeug van HTS
vir Suid-Afrika.
Hoër Tegniese Skool Middelburg, School Anthem (verse 4)
One way of triggering deep emotions and sentiment in Barnard Inc Junior Associate, Janie Venter, is to remind her of her time at her high school in Middelburg, Mpumalanga. “I was, and still am, a very proud Rooies student,” she smiles. “If I just hear our school anthem, I still get tears in my eyes. I honestly believed that I was in the best school in the country!”
Much of Janie’s reaction speaks to the complementary temperament that the school and her parents were determined to teach and inspire in her. It worked! And Janie reports that while she grew up in a typically strict Afrikaans household, her brother and her were raised to value equity, justice, tenacity, and perseverance. “My father is most probably the person that had the biggest influence in my life. Since I can remember, he treated me as like an adult and he is the most righteous person I know – he treats everyone equally.”
Janie says that her parents and her grandmother have a tremendous commitment to their work and work ethic. “They taught me to always go the extra mile when it comes to my dealings with clients, to be and all-or-nothing person. They are enthusiastic about any and every project they attend to and hopefully someday someone can say the same about me.” There’s very definitely no need for Janie to hope for that because her colleagues have already dubbed her the “Compliments Queen!” Janie regularly receives praise and appreciation from clients of Barnard Inc. “Thank you very much, Janie and your team at Barnard Inc. Thank you for your patience and utter professionalism you have displayed and continue to display and afford my family and me. Thank you so much. Baie, baie dankie Janie!” reads one of the many compliments that the firm receives on a regular basis. Her friend and fellow attorney, Krischka Müller concurs, “Janie is an extremely dependable, committed force of positivity that never backs down from a challenge
Yet, apart from service and willpower, it was also love that led her to her place at Barnard Inc. “I always knew that I wanted to help people, but I did not want to become a psychologist, nurse, or a minister so I decided to become a lawyer,” she says. “While I was still studying my then boyfriend – now husband – moved to Centurion from Middelburg. I wanted to visit him one holiday, but my parents would not have allowed it, so the plan was for me to look for shadow work at a law firm in Centurion to keep myself busy with, I would gain experience and this way I could convince my parents that I have to be Centurion for the holidays.” That same week her husband bumped into one of his friends in the local Spar. “They chatted a bit and she asked what I was doing, my husband told her that I was studying law and that I am actually looking for holiday work for that upcoming holiday. She mentioned that she knew Douw Breed and gave him Douw’s number. The rest is history!” To this day, Douw’s number is saved as “Douw Prokureur” on Janie’s phone. “Here at Barnard we are one big family – and that’s what I like most of the firm.”
When Janie isn’t garnering compliments and successful outcomes in matters, she enjoys cycling (another story of determination), socialising with friends and family, gardening, sewing and exercising. As her school song urges, “Healthy in spirit, healthy in body, we strive for this together each day.” Janie’s playing her part…
