In celebration of Mandela Day, the Headway Gauteng organised an event to celebrate first responders at the Sandton Fire Station.
Headway is a non-profit organisation dedicated to offering various support programmes to adult survivors of brain injury as well as their families. The majority of Headway’s members sustained a traumatic brain injury as a result of a motor vehicle accident, sporting accident or assault. However, they also assist survivors of other brain injuries such as a stroke.
Nicolene Holtzhausen is a member of Headway and suffered a traumatic brain injury 10 years ago. Holtzhausen explained that she was in a car accident, broke her neck and was in a coma for more than 40 days.
She said that following the accident, she had no idea who the first responders were that helped save her life. Five years ago, she decided to host a thank you celebration for first responders.
This year, Headway welcomed over 1 000 first responders including paramedics, policemen and firemen to enjoy a fun day celebrating their hard work.
Holtzhausen said, “I’ve got so much respect for first responders, they really did save my life and we just wanted to say thank you.”
Headway currently has branches in Hyde Park and Soweto and aims to provide a support system, counselling and therapy sessions as well as a holistic therapy programme. Each person who attended the Mandela Day celebration received a gift pack and a meal.
She added that the response from the first responders was amazing and said that a couple of paramedics had tears in their eyes when they were thanked for their hard work. For many, being a first responder is a thankless job and Holtzhausen said it was a great time to show their appreciation.
Holtzhausen concluded that the day was made possible by many amazing sponsors who contributed.
Details: Headway headway@iafrica.com
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