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Inside/Out with Andrea Whatman, founder of Kidzcan
Kubatana.net
April 24, 2012

Read the full interview with Andrea Whatman

Describe yourself in five words.
Energetic, enthusiastic, committed, loves life, happy.

What's the best piece of advice you've ever received?
If there is a will, there is a way.

What's the most ridiculous thing you've ever done?
I went dolphin viewing with my son and got seasick.

What is your most treasured possession?
My faith (in God).

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Being unloved.

What are some of your hobbies and interests?
Water colouring, scrap booking, gardening, music . . . Oh, and shopping!

What do you dislike most about your appearance?
I have very curly hair, and I wish that my hair were straight, and glossy and glamorous.

What is your greatest extravagance?
An iPod.

What do you have in your fridge?
Bacon, Gouda cheese, cream cheese, gherkins, diabetic strawberry jam and salad.

What is your greatest fear?
Getting Alzheimer's . . . because I've nursed my grandmother through that, and I don't want to be like that.

What have you got in your pockets right now?
$20.

What is your favourite journey?
I would love to go on an elephant safari.

Who are your heroes in real life?
Mother Theresa and the doctors and nurses at Pari and Harare [hospitals] and the kids that I work with. Honestly, they are unsung heroes.

When and where were you happiest?
I'm happiest in my home, in the sun, in my garden, listening to music, on my iPod.

What is your biggest vice?
Diet Coke.

What were you like at school?
I was a goody-goody. I loved school. I just loved being with people. I loved learning. I loved the stimulation. Anything I could learn I loved. I'm still like that. I still love learning.

What are your goals for the next 5 years?
I would like [for Kidzcan] to be a 25 bed private unit that is an area of paediatric oncology excellence, that admits any child and gives them free chemotherapy, drugs and the highest level of medical care that we could give. I want [us] to be an area of excellence in Africa. We can do it! I know we can do it! I've already looked at a house that looks like the place I want to [build]. You've got to be able to visualize it and say that's the kind of place. And then you start working on it.

What does International Women's Day mean to you?
It's an acknowledgement of where women have come from; how far they have come, and how far they can go.

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