By: Kylie Miller
Tony Janzen: the inspirational soccer player, husband, and Mennonite. What else is on Janzen’s plate?
Tony Janzen had started out as an average boy. He was athletic, intelligent, and focused on his academics. When senior year started, it hit Janzen; he had a strong passion for soccer. He played soccer all throughout his years at Goshen College, pushing to be the humble and determined soccer player he is today. “I had lots of guys that I looked up to in sports,” Janzen said.
In 2006, Janzen played for a national soccer tournament for the Maple Leafs. They had lost the first round, but Janzen had said it was still a “fun experience.” In Janzen’s college years, he had taken the opportunity for his Study Service Term and went to the Dominican Republic. During his trip, he had picked up some of the Spanish language. After his exotic trip to the Republic Janzen had decided he had wanted to do it again in the future. Janzen said, “When I met my wife, she had a similar interest.”
In 2013, Janzen and his wife Denise Reesor traveled to Cambodia to work for the MCC. (Mennonite Central Committee.) “Learning the language, that was a challenge,” Janzen said. One of Janzen’s challenges faced in Cambodia was adapting to the Cambodian culture. Janzen had said his height and hair had really differed from the Cambodians, which really made him stand out. “We met people from all over the world who were working in Cambodia,” Janzen said.