The Brink family. (Photo: Stepping Into Grace/Provided)
Around R500 000 worth of artificial limbs are soon on their way to Danie and Lise Brink’s home country, South Africa, thanks to their organisation, Stepping Into Grace (SIG), which donates second-hand prostheses and other components to people with amputations in South Africa.
“It’s the largest shipment of components that SIG has ever sent to specific patients whose names and stories we know. That is why it makes us extra excited to get the components in South Africa soon,” says Lise from Athens, Georgia in the USA, where the Brink family has lived since 2019.
Rhewal it reported earlier that Lise’s left leg was amputated above the knee after she, her husband, Danie, and their children were involved in a serious car accident outside Theunissen in the Free State on 16 December 2016.
Two of their children, André (13) and Rachel (8), died in this accident.
The prosthesis is packed and ready to come to SA. (Photo: Lise Brink/Facebook)
After 70 days in the hospital, Lise could watch from her garden as friends, family and strangers participated in a race to buy her her first prosthetic leg and wanted to give the same support to people in similar situations.
In the USA, she received an award for a running leg (“blade”) from Amputee Blade Runners (ABR) in Nashville, Tennessee. Through this community, she came into contact with other non-profit organizations that donate prostheses and components to people with amputations around the world.
This is how SIG, a non-profit organisation, was born, and since then nearly 40 South Africans have been assisted by this organization with quality second-hand prosthetics. SIG is also currently the sole distributor of these valuable donations to South Africa.
“We have previously sent larger consignments of components to prosthetists in South Africa. They apply the components as needs arise and then give us thorough feedback on the lives that are being changed.”
Eleven people will be assisted with SIG’s latest donation. Among this group is a 12-year-old Free State boy who lost both his legs and a hand due to a systemic septic infection.
“Because we get such wonderful, emotional feedback every time, and we know these people’s names and stories, we are terribly excited. We can’t wait for the feedback,” says Lise.
- Visit SIG’s website at www.tydomterugtegee.com.
- Click here to make a donation to SIG. A donation of $200 (about R3 600) sends an artificial limb to a patient in South Africa.
- Read more about Lise’s journey on the family Facebook page.
