Mr Bruwer (55) and his wife Marjan (52) moved from South Africa to New Zealand about nine years ago, living first in the Waikato region and then Masterton.
A change in Mr Bruwer's work as a sheep and beef farmer meant he had the option to move anywhere ''from Oamaru to Clinton''. The couple settled on Balclutha, population 4000.
''We bought a house and everything. We love it here.''
Mr Bruwer said the small town and rural setting was appealing to him.
''I like walking down the street and we know people.''
He has lived in Balclutha for about three years now and settled in easily.
As part of his work distributing bull semen to dairy farms, Mr Bruwer said he met a lot of farmers in the area and had got to know a lot of people. He had also joined the local golf club.
Mrs Bruwer, who also has permanent residency, said the area was beautiful and had everything she needed.
''It's got friendly people. It's close enough to Dunedin. We're rural people, not city people.''
Mrs Bruwer's mother also moved to Balclutha and was ''loving it''.
