Pela was born in Ulundi and had a happy childhood with his parents and 3 siblings. He was raised to be a disciplined young man who’s also a hard worker. After completing his studies, he later moved to Durban for employment. He worked at a large shipping company and at age 31 started building a home for him, his partner and their children. Everything seemed to be going well until a fateful day in July 2022. Pela went to Umlazi with a friend and his life changed forever. Out of nowhere a pair of gunmen appeared and shot him multiple times. He was rushed to hospital in a critical condition. Fortunately, he survived the injuries but this incident left Pela completely blind in both eyes.
After discharge, Pela was referred to KZN Blind and Deaf Society for further assistance. The Social Worker conducted home visits offering psychosocial support to the client and his family. Initially the emphasis was on grief counselling as he was struggling to accept the loss of his vision, mobility and employment. At first Pela was not very keen on receiving Society’s assistance because he viewed being blind as the end of his life. With ongoing counselling, and training from the Orientation and Mobility team, Pela started to accept the huge changes in his life. He joined the support group facilitated by the social worker where he interacted with other people with the same disability and became empowered. It was not an easy journey but through the support of his family, KZNBDS staff, the support group members and his previous employer, Pela is now more determined to live his life to the fullest and play an active role in his family.
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