Logan Poole
In December 2022, just a week before Christmas, Logan Poole (Ngāi Tūhoe, Te Arawa) received a phone call that would change his life. He was diagnosed with life-threatening liver disease and liver cancer, so he stopped working to focus on his treatment. Then in 2023, he received a full liver transplant and began to reflect deeply on what mattered most, determined to make the most of his second chance at life.
Before his diagnosis, Logan had worked in IT infrastructure in Auckland, specialising in hardware, cabling, networking, and server setups. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, his contract work dried up, and he returned home to Rotorua. He continued working in IT, but at Rotorua Hospital - the place where his health journey took shape.
After making a full recovery, Logan decided to pursue a long-held goal of moving from IT infrastructure into software development and web technologies, so he enrolled a Bachelor of Applied Information Technology at Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology in 2024.
Now in his second year, he says studying has helped reshape his life.
“For the first time in my life, I’m a straight-A student!” he says.
“I thought really hard about how to make the second half of my life better. I got a second chance, and I don’t take it for granted. I’m in the best health I’ve ever been in, both physically and mentally.”
Logan credits Toi Ohomai’s supportive, hands-on learning environment, small class sizes and dedicated tutors with helping him thrive. He approaches his studies with total commitment, admitting that learning takes “a bit of extra effort” now he’s in his 40s.
“I drive from Rotorua to the Toi Ohomai Tauranga campus each day for the course, so I give 110% when I’m here. I arrive early so I can settle in and have a coffee. I use my breaks to practice everything I’ve learnt in class, because I don’t want to re-sit anything.
I’ve got a plan, and I’m sticking with it,” he says.
Logan’s long-term goal is to one day start a family-run IT company.
His son, Kirtus, and nephew, Khan, are also studying the Bachelor of Applied Information Technology at Toi Ohomai, just a semester behind him. Khan enjoys coding and using Python – a programming language, while Kirtus is interested in game development. Logan hopes the three of them can combine their skills to build a meaningful and successful business for their whānau after graduating.
Logan says his health journey put things in perspective and changed his outlook on work and life.
“It was a good reminder that I’m not bulletproof. In my younger years I put my body through a lot - a lot of drinking. I want to show my kids and others that you can take a different path, and create a great life for yourself with the right mindset and work ethic,” he says.
This semester, Logan is presenting his IT project work at the Toi Ohomai IT Showcase, an on-campus event where ākonga share their work with industry representatives and staff. His mobile app, Ping, uses GPS technology to help users find each other with precision, for things like locating a home down a shared driveway to pick up a Trade Me purchase or even assisting in critical search and rescue efforts.
“In IT, when one computer talks to another, it’s called a ping. I’m looking forward to sharing the thinking behind the concept, why it matters, and all the coding and programming I did that got it up and running,” he says.
Looking ahead, Logan will complete his final year of study in 2026, then continuing to build a future he can be proud of.