Good Morning Angels: Oxygen and hope for 16-year-old Reece and his family
When Reece was 10-years-old, he was diagnosed with a very rare disease, Gorlin Goltz Syndrome.
BACKGROUND: The disease causes tumours to form in his body - mostly in his jaw. He has had more than 40 tumours removed and there is no known cure in South Africa. In fact, Reece's is one of only three known cases in the country and his is the worst. Despite his illness and multiple hospital visits, Reece is adamant to finish matric and become a game ranger one day. He was unable to go to school for a few years, but thanks to a tutor and hard work, he has caught up and is working on completing Grade 10 this year - on schedule.
Because of his deteriorating health, Reece’s mom, Marsha, has been his constant care-giver for the past three years, while his dad works to pay for medical aid and bills. Marsha says they would not have been able to get this far without the assistance of their community. They are, however, struggling to keep up with the medical bills and treatment expenses and have fallen behind on their electricity bill - which is now R39,000 in arrears. The power to their home has been cut and they use a generator to keep Reece’s oxygen machine running at night. Reece cannot survive a night without his oxygen.
Several members of the community have written to Good Morning Angels on this family’s behalf, to help them get the electricity back on, so brave Reece can have a fighting chance.
REQUEST FOR: 16-year old Reece from Benoni and his family
REQUEST FROM: Several listeners, including Lauren Oelofsen
ANGEL: Maria Pavli from LottoStar
SPONSORING: Last week and this week, Good Morning Angels is the recipient charity of the LottoStar “How Lucky Can You Get” competition on Jacaranda FM. From the funds raised in partnership with LottoStar, the Good Morning Angels Fund NPC will assist Reece and his family with R50 000 - to pay up their electricity account - and another R10 000 for medical bills and expenses.
YOU CAN HELP: Donations towards Reece’s treatment can be made to the account below:
Account name: Reece Trumpelmann
Bank: Capitec Savings
Account no: 1493736289
Branch Code: 470010
ORIGINAL REQUEST:
Good day
I am writing to you to request assistance for a young man, Reece, who together with his family, has become a familiar face to our community here in Benoni. This is such a brave young boy, who has inspired many with his determination and fighting spirit, as he battles against so many health issues and problems. His mom too, is such an inspiration as she fights for him and seeks answers and treatments for his various problems.
Their journey has been a struggle but they don't give up.
I just saw a post from Reece's mom saying their power has been cut due to unpaid bills as they have been trying to pay the medical bills first....they are receiving summons for these now and Reece can't see doctors until these bills are paid. He is also on an oxygen machine at night.
So they are really in a predicament.
If there is any way they can get assistance, it would be greatly appreciated.
It would be wonderful for them to receive some financial assistance and a break from the worries and woes of medical bills so they can move forward with the treatment and intervention needed to assist Reece and just focus on getting him well.
I have included more information below about his condition, written by his mom Marsha.
This is also a link to their Facebook page with more information about his journey.
Thank you to Good Morning Angels for all you do. I can imagine you receive many requests and I thank you for your time and consideration in reading this one.
God bless,
Lauren Oelofsen