Co-Founder & Chief Explorer, WanderWild
Co-Founder & Chief Explorer, WanderWild
In July 2026, Monzi hit a breaking point so severe she tried to end her life. What came after, in her own words, was the best decision she has ever made, not that moment itself, but everything that grew from it.
Before that, survival had already become her whole language. As a single mother without a permanent home or guaranteed income, Monzi made a choice most people never have to face: climb into her little Jimny and turn the hardest chapter of her life into an adventure instead of a defeat. What started as the Monzi 4x4 Survival Challenge, living with very little, pushing past her limits, refusing to quit, became MonziLife: camping, travelling, exploring and proving to herself and everyone watching that a woman can come back from almost anything.
She walked away from the system that had nearly broken her twice: the paycheque, the title, the idea that a “successful life” was worth trading her peace for. She sold almost everything she owned, leaned hard into her faith, and made a promise to herself to actually live, in the now, not for some someday that never comes. God is first, always, and that conviction only grew stronger through everything survival asked of her.
She had spent nights watching strangers on YouTube abandon everything to wander the world by van, by boat, by whatever got them moving, and something in her finally said yes, that’s it. Not long after, she met Nicole and Armin online, and the three of them realised they were chasing the same horizon. WanderWild became the vessel for it, and today it is also the road toward her next goal: qualifying as a commercial 4x4 guide and building her own 4x4 survival and outdoor adventure tourism experience, so she can take what very nearly broke her and use it to show other people the way back to themselves.
Speed has always been part of the story, too. Long before WanderWild, Monzi was the “lady racer” at Kyalami, taking passengers around the track on hot laps at the BMW Car Club’s Track and Race Day, with the proceeds going to PinkDrive, a breast cancer awareness initiative. Racetrack or rough track, her rule is the same: take it seriously, bring the energy, and make sure everyone along for the ride has the time of their life.
Today, Monzi is WanderWild's explorer and dealmaker, scouting the wildest, most remote roads before anyone else has bothered to try, and negotiating with the adventure and product suppliers who bring the experiences to life. A single mother fiercely protective of children and animals, she puts her energy loudly behind causes close to her heart: women's and children's safety, animal welfare, breast cancer awareness, and mental health and suicide awareness, because she has lived the other side of that story and made it out.
Go off-roading with Monzi and you will be asked one question at the bottom of every hairy descent: #butdidyoudie. You will also get the best friend you never knew you needed, someone who puts God first, tells you the truth even when it stings and brings more life into a room than anyone else there.
Don't be ordinary. Be extraordinary. Live Legendary. #MonziLife
Monzi doesn't just talk about the things that matter to her. She points people towards the organisations doing the work.
Women's and children's safety: GBV Command Centre (0800 428 428) and Childline South Africa
Animal welfare: NSPCA
Breast cancer awareness: PinkDrive
Mental health and suicide awareness: SADAG
If anything on this page resonates and you need someone to talk to, you are not alone.
SADAG's Suicide Crisis Helpline is free and open 24 hours a day: 0800 567 567.
Monzi's story didn't stop at survival, she is now working toward becoming a qualified commercial 4x4 guide and building her own 4x4 survival and outdoor adventure tourism experience, so she can hand what very nearly broke her to other people as a way back to themselves.
If her journey has moved you, you can help her get there.