Some people visit the bush and fall in love with it.
Others carry that love with them for a lifetime.
At 88 years young, Joan Grosset is one of those special people.
Joan has volunteered at Insimbi twice, and during her time with us she has become part of the Insimbi family. Her connection to conservation, wildlife and the bush began many years before she ever arrived at our reserve — and her story is one of adventure, dedication and a genuine love for animals.
From Karate to the Bush
For 18 to 20 years, Joan practised karate. When her boys were born, she stepped away from it for a year to focus on being a mom.
Then one day, she heard something on the radio about becoming a field guide through FGASA (Field Guides Association of Southern Africa).
It sparked something.
With the support of her husband, Peter, she signed up for the lessons and began learning everything from identifying trees and grasses to recognising animals and understanding the bush around her.
She completed her practical training at a game reserve that had started up near her home and eventually became a qualified field guide through FGASA.
Her husband Peter was a filmmaker and editor, and together they spent countless hours exploring the outdoors. They camped extensively in Botswana and Namibia and even spent 10 months travelling and camping in Australia, taking the opportunity to experience and learn about its wildlife too.
The bush wasn’t simply somewhere Joan visited.
It became part of who she was.
A Heart for Wildlife
Joan’s love for wildlife eventually led her into rehabilitation work.
She volunteered with an organisation caring for wildlife, where she helped wherever she was needed. Her work included preparing food, cleaning cages, helping in the clinic and even tube-feeding animals.
Her particular passion was bats and their rehabilitation, but her experience didn’t stop there.
She started out helping with doves and other birds and eventually established a small home clinic to care for wildlife. She also helped rehabilitate wild meerkats.
Through all these experiences, Joan developed an even deeper appreciation for the animals and the importance of conservation.
Books also played a special role in her journey. She read many of Tony Park’s books, which helped keep her connection to the bush and conservation alive as she grew older.
And eventually, that journey brought her to Insimbi.
A Family Connection to Insimbi
Joan’s first connection with Insimbi came through her son, Clinton, who visited us as part of a Rhino Guardian Experience.
She has now volunteered at Insimbi twice, getting involved in all sorts of jobs — from clearing branches and maintaining roads to helping with fences, keeping rhino records and even making jewellery.
Not everything in conservation happens in front of a camera or beside a rhino. Sometimes it is the less glamorous jobs that keep a reserve running, and Joan was always willing to get stuck in and help wherever she could.
A Very Special Highlight
When asked about her highlight at Insimbi, Joan didn’t hesitate.
The dehorning.
Being able to witness some of our rhinos up close during the dehorning operation gave Joan a very different perspective of the animals she had come to care about.
But there was something else she mentioned too — something that means a great deal to us.
The down-to-earth nature of Insimbi.
For Joan, conservation isn’t about standing on the sidelines. It’s about getting your hands dirty, helping where you can and being part of the work that protects these animals.
And Then There Was Shinkwe…
Every volunteer has a rhino who captures their heart.
For Joan, it is Shinkwe.
Shinkwe was the very first rhino Joan saw at Insimbi, making her an especially memorable part of Joan’s experience here. That first encounter clearly left an impression — so much so that Joan has since adopted her.
We think it’s rather fitting that the rhino who first welcomed Joan to Insimbi became the one she chose to support.
A Lifetime of Loving the Wild
Joan has been married to her husband, Peter, for an incredible 63 years.
From karate lessons to becoming a qualified field guide, camping across Botswana and Namibia, exploring Australia’s wildlife, rehabilitating animals and eventually volunteering at Insimbi — her life has been filled with experiences connected by one common thread: her love for the natural world.
At 88, Joan is still curious, still learning and still finding ways to contribute.
We are incredibly grateful that her journey brought her to Insimbi — not once, but twice.
Thank you, Joan, for getting stuck in, for sharing your knowledge, for caring so deeply and for reminding us that a love for conservation has no age limit.
And of course, thank you for giving Shinkwe a very special place in your heart. ❤️🦏
Once part of the Insimbi family, always part of the Insimbi family.
