A FAMILIAR sight on the streets on Mornington is Robert Klaas Kalma, who many will recognise as the friendly musician who for the past four years has been Main Street’s “humble busker”.
But what many who stop listen and drop a few coins in his bucket may not know is that Kalma’s efforts have raised hundreds of dollars for Red Cross and the Royal Children’s Hospital.
Even more remarkable is the fact that the almost 83-year-old didn’t take up music until he was 70, without ever having a lesson.
Kalma has had his fair share of personal tragedies and says that while he has “dodged several bullets,” he refuses to give up.
“There is always a new adventure or challenge there for the taking … it really is a matter of re-inventing who we are or want to be,” he said.
“Any obstacle can be turned into an achievement.”