Learner receives a new leg

It’s been a week since he received his prosthetic leg, which was donated to him by a generous sponsor.

According to school principal Nomsa Sobende, Tsotesti was born with a deformed right limb, which was amputated at an early age.

He then received a prosthetic leg which he used for mobility until it was destroyed in June, when his home caught fire.

“He missed school for some time that’s when I appealed to his mother to organise transportation, so he may come to school.

“It was also a mission for him to manoeuvre around school during changing of periods, resulting in senior learners and staff having to carry him from class to class,”explains the principal.

The deputy principal, Mapule Qhojeng, related the story to Dr Jaco Deist, from Pretoria, to try to find assistance with a prosthetic leg.

“The doctor said it would cost R80 000 for the boy to get a prosthetic leg, but, after learning about Tsotesti’s background, he reduced the cost to R5 000,” she says.

“As the staff of the school we then took it upon ourselves to try to raise funds and also involved parents of learners at the school to assist with any amount they could afford.

“While on the quest to raise funds for Tsotetsi, Abdul Sami Khan, from Edu Lab and Technologies, a service provider of our school library, offered to foot the bill out of his own pocket.

“The funds raised by parents and staff went to the transportation costs, because, on a weekly basis, Tsotetsi needed to go to and from Pretoria for fittings.”

The doctor responsible for Tsotetsi’s prosthetic leg has pledged to maintain it until he reaches secondary school.

“We thank everyone who rose to the occasion to help this learner, because he is a very active boy; he is a goalkeeper for the soccer team and this will also boost his self-confidence, so he doesn’t see himself as different to other children,” adds Sobende.