East London Childhood Cancer Foundation (CHOC) kids are in a for a treat this Mandela Day with exciting activities planned for them.
This year’s Mandela Day marks the centenary of the birth of the late Nelson Mandela. This day set aside globally for people to take action and inspire change by giving back into their communities.
CHOC regional manager, Debbie Kleinenberg said that the children will enjoy the entertainment from the comfort and safety of the children’s ward.
“The challenge with the kids is they can’t leave the ward as its not recommended by their doctors for their recovery. We have activities planned such as a movie marathon,” said Kleinenberg.
For this Mandela Day, the foundation has a “wish list” with items for clothes for adults and children (new and used), groceries (perishable & non-perishable), toiletries, and stationery to name but a few.
This wish list helps those in need such as Neliswa Ntunja from Queenstown whose daughter eight year old daughter, Banoyolo who was diagnosed with aplastic anaemia.
Ntunja said she travelled 192 kilometres from her village to get her daughter to the local hospital for three years, without getting a proper diagnosis.
“It was in 2017 that she was finally diagnosed with aplastic anameia at Frere Hospital. Blood tests were done and a bone marrow biopsy was done,” said Ntunja.
When Neliswa isn’t in Queenstown, she stays at the CHOC house while Banoyolo is getting treatment at Frere Hopsital.
“They give us nice food and care for us a lot. They also help me with the transport costs every time I want to go home because I’m not working and money is scarce,” she said.
Banoyolo is still awaiting a bone marrow transplant while her mother is tireless in her efforts to raise awareness in her community.
CHOC is asking companies and individuals for help by donating cash or items listed on their wish lists which can be found on www.choc.org.za or contact the East London office on 086 111 2109 / email el@choc.org.za.
