There were was tears of joy as nine-year-old Matthew Tutton, who was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy, received a specially-made wheelchair from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints on Thursday, 06 October.
The handover of the wheelchair to Mathew was overseen by members of church and occupational therapist, Dominique de Klerk, who were joined by Ward 33 councillor, Sakhile Mngadi. Senior missionary at the church, Elder David Nish said they donate thousands of wheelchairs and mobility devices to the Department of Health and non-profit organisations every year. He said: “We train disabled people and therapists to repair wheelchairs. Dominique de Klerk, who was one of our trainees and now the chief occupational therapist, was walking on the beach promenade when she saw Matthew and his dad in a not so good, broken down wheelchair. Knowing that the parts are expensive, she approached me and I told her that according to the church’s policy, we don’t donate to individuals. “I approached most of my friends to help us help this young man get a wheelchair specially made for him. Luckily, one of the members at CE Mobility was understanding and asked that the company’s therapists take measurements of the young man and get his wheelchair done. Matthew, now has a fantastic wheelchair, and this is what our church is all about, helping those in need and we hope that he will now, get stronger, enjoy the outdoor life and run future marathons. I would like to thank the councillor for his presence in this beautiful initiative and the therapists who worked on this.”
James Tutton, Matthew’s father and Durban North resident, thanked everyone that was involved in the making of his son’s wheelchair. “The main thing is to inspire Matthew to walk and to become mentally competitive and to also inspire other children. He currently has a wheelchair which we are going to be paying forward and pass on to somebody else. Hopefully that person will also pass it to someone else. We want to create that mental development and desire to succeed. We often have disabled children that are generally people that don’t think will succeed, and we hoping that one day he will be able to walk,” said Tutton. De Klerk, who is a chief occupational therapist at KZN Children’s Hospital, said this donation was very rewarding for her. “It’s incredibly rewarding to be able to have an influence in a person with a disability such as Matthew, something that other people would take for granted. I was on the promenade doing a park run when I saw him and his dad. For the love of my job, I couldn’t help but get touched. I’m incredibly grateful to the health department, church and CE Mobility because it’s these connections that allow us to do great things. Thanks to all the stakeholders. I look forward to continuing to help millions of other children that have big dreams,” said de Klerk. Sakhile Mngadi, ward 33 councillor said that it was an honour to be a part of this life changing handover. He said: “I would like to thank all the stakeholders who took their time in making sure that the little man gets the wheelchair that will make his life easier and probably help him be able to walk one day,” he said.
