Boy’s annual fundraiser a record success
HONEYDEW – Golf fundraiser grows year on year for little Marno Greyvenstein.
The third annual Marno Greyvenstein Golf Day was bigger than ever, both in funds raised and smiles shared.
Eagle Canyon Golf Estate saw companies and individuals take to the greens on 9 March and raise a record R300 000 for Marno, the four-year-old boy fighting numerous health issues.
Lions rugby players Ross Cronje, Burger Odendaal and Travis Gordon, and former player Alwyn Hollenbach, were among those showing their mettle on the lush course. Skills Development Corporation CEO Daniel Gibhard expressed satisfaction that his company could be the main sponsor of the event again.
“It was great that more companies could get behind this and that 5FM could raise money on their show,” he said between shots. “Often people do not think giving back will help, or what they give will not be enough. But when you know the people involved, giving back is enough for us.”
Marno is suffering from, among many other things, an absent corpus callosum in the brain (which is responsible for quick communication between the left and right hemispheres), cerebral atrophy (shrinking of the frontal lobe of the brain), underdeveloped optic nerves in his eyes and severe mandibular hypoplasia, which is a short bottom jaw and insignificant chin. It means he cannot crawl, walk or speak and goes to weekly speech therapy, occupational therapy and physiotherapy.
Furthermore, he underwent heart surgery on 15 February and in the next two months may undergo a laryngoscopy to assess the state of his throat with the view to remove his tracheostomy tube so he can breathe on his own.
Marno’s parents Emile and Mynette were at the event to thank the public for their support. “All things considered it has actually been a good year from Marno,” father Emile said. “The operations were a success and he has been his healthiest while at home. Obviously, there was no therapy for a few months and that had an effect, but when we got back to it, Marno did well.”
Marno’s mother, Mynette, explained that when they went for procedures at the hospital, the parents were able to encourage other parents going through similar situations.
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