Excerpt
I met Bongani, a 16-year-old from Bitcoin Ekasi, who went from a surfer kid to building his own Lightning Node in South Africa. He shares how he learned about Bitcoin, his passion for tech, and his big plans for the future. Watch now to hear his inspiring journey!
Do you want to support Bongani on his journey? Send him some sats—I bet it’ll make his day! bongani@blink.sv
Transcript
Q: Hello, nice to meet you. Slooh told me that you were the one who set up the Lightning node. Is that true?
A: Yes, that is true.
Q: Can you show me the node?
A: In there.
(points to the device)
Q: This one? And that is now a Lightning node?
A: It is a full node.
Q: What is running on there?
A: A BTCPay Server.
Q: How did you learn to set that up?
A: We were doing online meetups with Open Arms, who was helping us learn.
Q: That is super great. How long did it take you to learn all of that?
A: Approximately five to six months.
Q: You must really be interested in it, hey?
A: Very much. So much.
Q: Do you think this is going to be your job in the future?
A: Maybe. I think so, yeah.
Q: Do you like it?
A: Yes, I like it so much. I love computer science and everything about computers.
Q: What are your goals? I assume you are using Bitcoin yourself, but are you also still in school?
A: Yeah.
Q: How old are you?
A: I am 16, turning 17.
Q: And when did you start learning about Bitcoin?
A: In October 2021.
Q: Oh wow, so you have been into Bitcoin for almost four years now?
A: Yes.
Q: And you have learned a lot in that time?
A: Yes. I have also been having online classes with Jason. He is from the US, in Ohio.
Q: What kind of classes?
A: We were reading the Bitcoin White Paper. Every Tuesday, we have sessions—kind of like a book club.
Q: So I assume, since you set up the node yourself, you really like this kind of work. What were you doing before you got into Bitcoin?
A: Before Bitcoin, I was just sitting in the house, playing with other children when I was around 10 or 11. Then I joined The Surfer Kids in May 2019. I think I was in grade five.
Q: And you did not know about Bitcoin back then?
A: No, I was just going to school, coming back home, doing homework—that was it.
Q: When did that change? When did you realize you liked this?
A: My friend introduced me to The Surfer Kids, and I was interested. I joined to learn how to surf. But surfing was hard for me. I was struggling to adapt. That is when I first met Christo, and he introduced me to Bitcoin.
Q: So that was your first contact with Bitcoin?
A: Yes. That is where I learned about it.
Q: I remember being there once, three years ago, when Christo was teaching. You were learning with sats and passing Lightning torches around, right?
A: Yes. That was my first time learning about Bitcoin.
Q: What did you like about it?
A: The science behind it. Like how did Satoshi Nakamoto create it? It was so interesting. I wanted to know what Bitcoin is and how it works—the Bitcoin network around the world.
Q: So you were not just interested in using it—you wanted to understand it?
A: Yes.
Q: That is super great, I love it. So what are your plans for the next years?
A: I want to go to a university of technology. I want to study and become a computer scientist, an IT specialist. Then I will start investing in Bitcoin, saving Bitcoin. Then I want to buy a house and a car.
Q: Using Bitcoin?
A: Yes. I am just going to take it step by step.
Q: And I think with your experience already at that young age, you are going to be a great Bitcoin or Lightning developer.
A: Yes, very much.
Q: Super! Thank you.
A: Thank you so much.
