Vanessa Honiball is a Ballito-based wildlife and documentary film producer, wife and mum of two. She’s also a passionate volunteer at The Dolphin Coast Residents and Ratepayers Association (DOCRRA), an NGO that concerns itself with safety and security, the environment and community affairs on the Dolphin Coast.
Vanessa has lived in international cities, travelled the world, and worked in remote African villages – but it’s the Dolphin Coast that finally felt like home. After years in Umdloti, she moved to Ballito in 2017 with her husband Geoff and their two young children, Calla and Jude.
“I’m well-travelled and have experienced life in many different places,” she says, “but the Dolphin Coast is the place that felt, and still feels, like home.”
FROM BABY BRAIN TO COMMUNITY ACTION
In 2019, something happened that lit a fire in Vanessa. With a newborn at home and barely any sleep, she learned that half of Townsend Park – including the wild, indigenous section right near her front gate – was being earmarked for development.
“My son was fresh out of the oven, so raging hormones and a lack of sleep made me even madder,” she recalls. Furious and determined to do something, she attended a community meeting, met the DOCRRA team, and signed up as a volunteer within a week.
USING HER VOICE – AND HER SKILLS
A film producer by trade, with a background in conservation, Vanessa now assists DOCRRA on the environmental subcommittee, and with communications and video, using her professional expertise to help give the organisation a stronger voice. But she admits it’s also been a personal growth journey.
“I can be fairly outspoken and don’t take kindly to injustice,” she says. “Serving on the DOCRRA committee has taught me so much… and provided a platform through which to fight for our community’s rights, the right way.”
NO SIDELINES, JUST ACTION
For Vanessa, getting involved wasn’t optional. “I can’t sit on the sidelines (or on social media!) and complain, holding thumbs that someone else will hopefully do something.”
She believes the only way to protect the lifestyle the Dolphin Coast is known for is by stepping up and working together. And while DOCRRA’s committee is packed with talent, she worries about the future.
“The committee is largely made up of senior or retired professionals. We’re seriously lacking a new generation of younger people who care enough to offer up their time and skills… It’s a scary thought as to what the future holds.”
A GENTLE CALL TO ACTION
Vanessa’s story is a reminder that you don’t need all the time in the world to make a difference – just enough passion to say yes when it counts. Her path from exhausted new mum to vocal community advocate shows what can happen when we stop waiting for someone else to take the lead.
Details: www.docrra.co.za;
064 737 2269; admin@docrra.co.za
