Early on in Below Deck Mediterranean season 6, Mzi “Zee” Dempers spoke about his adoption story with his fellow crew members, and it’s time to share details about his upbringing and family. The green deckhand was new to the series (and the yachting industry) as he worked alongside bosun Malia White and deckhands David Pascoe and Lloyd Spencer. Since Mzi was new, Malia took him under her wing and guided him through the process. She showed him what a deckhand must do in order to be successful on a superyacht such as the Lady Michelle.
Thanks to Below Deck Mediterranean season 6, Mzi has become a fan-favorite amongst the viewers. People adore his friendship with his fellow deckhands and also love learning about his budding romance with third stew Courtney Veale. Mzi began to grow closer to his crew after he opened up about his family and adoption story. His team rallied behind him to let him know what a good person he is, and how lucky they were to have someone like Mzi as a part of their crew.
Earlier this month, the South African native did an exclusive interview with Today, where he spoke about his unique adoption story. At only three years old, Mzi’s mother passed away from an unknown illness and was adopted by a family. His grandmother was a domestic worker for that family. The 26-year-old is Black, while his family is white, which wasn’t very common during the mid-1990s, when apartheid ended. Before his mother’s death, Mzi, (a Below Deck Med star who thinks diversity is lacking in yachting), spent weekends at the Dempers family’s house, since his mother worked all the time and his grandmother took care of him. His mother often had to commute to her job, while his grandmother lived in a house on the Dempers family property.
Mzi bonded with his brother Josh, who is two years older. Mzi’s biological father couldn’t take him in as they didn’t have much of a relationship, so the responsibility fell on his grandmother. The Dempers saw this as a sign to take Mzi in and make him a part of their family. “That’s when my parents now almost saw […] a sign for them to take me in because I’d already been spending so much time with the family,” he said. “I got to have the best of my grandmother and the best of having an actual family.” After everything Mzi from Below Deck has been through, he now rates his family “very highly” and tries “to be as grateful as possible for every opportunity that presents itself.”
He knows how he got where he is today and attributes his success to his supportive family. Mzi is the youngest of five in his family. He has two other brothers who are 50 and 47, a 40-year-old sister, and Josh, who is 29. Growing up, he was the closest to Josh, as his older siblings didn’t live at home. However, they were always there for him, especially at school, when kids would direct racial slurs at him, or laugh at him for his dreadlocks. Still, it took him four years to call his adoptive mother “mom.”
Thanks to his family, the future Below Deck Mediterranean season 6 star Mzi got into yachting. His two brothers introduced him to the pleasures of boating. The lifestyle has brought them closer together. He’s blessed because he has a loving family.