A 94-year-old grandmother from Retreat was excited to receive a brand new wheelchair on Friday 12 May.
Iris Hermanes (94) has been using a wheelchair since the age of 90 and her old wheelchair had seen better days.
Ward 72 councillor Kevin Southgate, who did the handover, said the process began when Hermanes met Deputy Mayor Eddie Andrews.
“Last year, Cape Town Deputy Mayor Eddie Andrews met Aunty Iris. At the time, he said he was going to give her a new wheelchair.
“And that was the beginning of the journey for a new wheelchair.”
According to Southgate, they requested assistance from Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis, who reached out last week.
“We asked the mayor if he would assist with a donation of a wheelchair for Aunty Iris.
“Last week, the mayor called to say that he received a donation of wheelchairs from an international supplier and made one available for Aunty Iris.”
Hermanes, who has lived in Retreat for over five decades, says she is grateful to God.
“God is so good to me and I thank God. I pray every evening and I pray for all the seniors.
“Daar is baie se kinders wat die geld vat, hulle gee nie vir hulle ’n koppie tee of a stukkie brood nie. But I am still one of the lucky ones.”
Born in District Six, the grandmother believes “if you look after your parents, you will get your reward one day”.
“I am still in the church and I am the leader of the seniors and we are not that many, most have died.
“There is something wrong with my legs, they thought it was arthritis and eventually I got to the specialist at the Day Hospital and then they said I must take another X-ray. Then they said it is the joints in my legs. I can feel it (the pain) in my back and knees.”
Mercia de Waal, chair of the Retreat Older Persons Forum, said she is pleased that Hermanes received a new wheelchair.
“I am so pleased to be here with Aunty Iris. She is 94, the eldest senior in the Retreat Older Persons Forum, and she is still running a senior’s club.
“So, I am blessed, I was always the one to pick her up. I am happy that she can now be mobile with a new wheelchair.”
