Anastacia Hope Abrahams - a little angel who instantly endeared herself to Ms Gwen Mahlangu-Nkabinde, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, at first sight during her visit to the Red Cross Children’s Hospital on the 1 June - International Children Day -has sadly passed on.
A cold, hard fact that left her parents distraught and heartbroken. During the solemn funeral service of this twelve-month old toddler at Grassy Park’s Baptist Church, 15 July, which was graced by Ms Gwen Mahlangu-Nkabinde, her miniature casket stood stoically symbolic of a life that has finally reached its eternal destination.
Ms Mahlangu-Nkabinde was in turn the eminent guest and she delivered a speech welled with compassion.
“Thank you God for giving us an angel that dispensed warmth that one could not even get from adults. She has left behind a legacy of caring, of warmth and love. That is how she will be remembered. And that will in time help to heal and console us.”
Her tone evinced a special relationship she had with Anasticia whose seeds were ploughed during her recent visit to the Red Cross Children’s Hospital on International Children’s Day.
“When I went to visit children at Red Cross on International Children Day, I did not know Anastacia. As I went through the wards caressing, kissing and comforting them, I came across her. She clung to my hand, she would not let it go and there was an instantaneous bond between us. That immediately cemented our relationship.”
Their bond grew and subsequently she adopted her. “I instantly reached a decision that I will adopt her and I did. Since then, I visited her several times whenever I had time and our relationship blossomed.” Her adoption has always been an initiative she held dear in the deep recesses of her heart. An ideal that speaks volubly to Parliament’s mission and vision.
The Parliamentary Women’s Caucus - a multiparty women vanguard, subsequently visited the Hospital in a show of care and solidarity with children suffering from ill health.
“Parliament is a caring institution. It is a people’s institution. And work like this is responsive to the needs of the people and is driven by the ideal of realising a better quality of life for all the people of South Africa, as stipulated in its vision statement. There is no better way of bringing that to life than in such an initiative.”
She claimed that this is not something new; it’s what MPs are often seized with during their constituency work.
“This is to show that as Parliamentarians we are not only passing legislation, we also take care of people who are in sorrow, who need comfort in time of need. In this case this shows that Parliament cares about the plight of children. After all, we are people’s representatives. We are MPs because of the people. We listen to their voices and we are their voices.”
Anastacia was bedevilled by complicated ill health at birth. Soon after her birth her ribs and chest bones caved in. That tempered with her breathing which necessitated a breathing support device to help her breath normally.
She since recuperated, but Ms Mahlangu-Nkabinde soon realised that she would need financial help to sustain her life. “It became obvious that should she be discharged from hospital she would need a support machine which was to cost well over R300 000. That necessitated means of raising funds to that effect. A consideration that has seen the conception of Touch of Hope,” she says.
The Touch of Hope, which is still in its conception, is a result of what their collective caring minds mulled over.
“Touch of Hope is an initiative that is still in conception. But it’s a step in the right direction. It is a result of the realization of the need to set a trust fund to help children who need help. When this initiative is off the ground it will see MPs visiting children-reading stories, singing songs and giving them gifts. Spending time with children in need no matter how little it may be goes a long way in comforting them,” says Ms Mahlangu-Nkabinde.
Sadly for Anastacia, there was a drastic reversal of her condition, a strain that forced her to finally succumb to death. Expectedly, her parents deplored her passing on, but were profusely consoled by the care and attention that was conferred on them.
