UPDATE: ‘Warrior boy’ to be honoured in book

The nine-year-old boy who put up a brave but ultimately futile battle against a crushing genetic disorder will come to life in the pages of a book authored by his mother.

Gidion du Toit, born with a disorder that causes fatal bone marrow failure, Fanconi Anaemia (FA), died in November last year, from complications during a transplant.

Mother Tuschka Reynders said she will share her son’s life story in a book to inspire people and detail the hardships and victories her son had overcome.

“When he was born, I made a promise to God that if He saved his life, I would make sure that when Gidi was old enough, he would share his miracles with the world,” she said.

“This book is written from the deepest corners of my heart in brutal honesty.”

According to his mother, Gidion faced medical challenges of multiple doctors’ visits involving needles and blood transfusions from birth yet kept going.

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With the help of the community, the Reynders raised funds for him to undergo a bone marrow transplant at a hospital in Cape Town.

“Giving up was simply not an option,” Reynders said.

While being tested in preparation for the transplant, doctors found that Gidion had contracted hepatitis that caused his liver to be inflamed and led to the complications.

Reynders said the boy suffered two heart-attacks and multiple organ failure, including a collapsed left lung that caused him breathing difficulty.

Many labelled the boy, who eventually died a few weeks ahead of his 10th birthday, a warrior when it became known that doctors had declared he would not live past the age of two.

“I was given the privilege to be a mom to the strongest and bravest little boy I know,” Reynders said.

“God didn’t give him to me because He thought I would be strong enough or that I could handle a special needs kid better than anyone else, He gave Gidion to me because He knew my life would be empty and not worth living without him.”

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She said her emotions in the book would range from blissful happiness to dark rage.

Reynders said the book was not intended to sugar-coat their journey, but share the realities it took her through.

“My days were filled with incomprehensible love, competing with each other to see who had the least patience, always looking for answers to the problems we faced and giving him the best life he could ever ask for,” she said.

“In reality, we live in a broken world that doesn’t make sense; where bad things happen to good people. But still, we survive because faith is all we have.

“I sincerely hope that everyone who reads this book will be inspired and find hope in their dark times.”

No information was available as to when the book would be in the stores.

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