As if running the Comrades Marathon isn't hard enough‚ a Durban businessman will be making it a little tougher by bouncing a tennis ball along the 86.73km route - all in the name of raising money for two children.
Myles Buxton‚ 48 ‚ of Umhlanga‚ will join over 21‚400 runners from Durban to Pietermaritzburg‚ but he will be bouncing a ball all the way to raise money for Vithal and Chezlyn.
Vithal‚ 10‚ who has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy — a genetic disorder characterised by progressive muscle degeneration and weakness - has lost the use of his legs‚ while 14-year-old Chezlyn suffers with Leukaemia‚‚ cancer of the blood or bone marrow.
“As Vithal’s arms weaken he will not be able to get around using a manual wheelchair. We are appealing for funds to assist him in purchasing two motorised wheelchairs – which can be very pricey.
"Chezlyn is a very bright young lady who was diagnosed with Leukaemia in 2013. She went into remission last year‚ but it unfortunately returned in November 2016.
"She needs an urgent bone marrow transplant‚ which is extremely expensive and costs can reach R1-million.
"My hope is that by raising funds we can help her family deal with these exorbitant costs‚ as well as create awareness to the cause and the great work that the Sunflower Fund does in finding donor matches for Chezlyn and other children like her‚” said Buxton.
He said a small donation would make a huge difference to these children’s lives.
Buxton‚ who has run five Comrades Marathons over 19 years‚ has run for other organisations previously and raised money for The Sunflower Fund and Ray of Hope Babies Home‚ amongst others.
“By God’s grace I have raised over R150‚000 over the course of these runs. People from my networks and database have been kind enough to sponsor me. On the last two down runs‚ I realised that I wanted to do something different‚ so I bounced a tennis ball the entire way‚” said Buxton.
He said the ball-bouncing idea came from Tom Hanks movie‚ Cast Away‚ where his basketball Wilson is his soul mate and friend.
Buxton said he called this run Bouncing Wilson for the children.
“This year I wanted to make a difference in the life of a child who needs urgent medical assistance. I made some enquiries with a doctor friend who does amazing work with ill children‚ and she highlighted the needs of these two precious children‚” he said.
- TMG Digital/TMG Sport
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