South Africa Unites for Musa's New Wheelchair; Success in 2 Days

Photo Credit: Ilan Guest

In just two days, South Africans raised essential funds for wheelchair rugby player Musa to get a new wheelchair! A campaign started by his coach Ilan, who feared Musa’s chair would fall apart any day now, the effort has been nothing short of a whirlwind success:

Johannesburg, South Africa (11 October 2024) — A young man named Musa can usually be found beaming with an infectious smile. A rugby lover, enthusiastic character and dedicated teammate, it’s almost easy to forget that Musa’s life has been fledged with difficulty.

Musa is wheelchair-bound due to polio. An orphan who has never been to school, he also does not know the joy of reading or writing. Finding work, too, is a struggle for him, on top of all the day-to-day difficulties that come with a world on wheels. But his happiness comes from the same place it does for many South Africans—rugby.

Musa is a member of a wheelchair rugby team in Mandeville, where he plays under the dedicated guidance of coach Ilan Guest.

Susan Schaum, who put the story on Good Things Guy’s radar, said that Ilan has been coaching the team for many years. Ilan also understands Musa’s plight in a personal way due to his own brother being wheelchair-bound.

“He is a selfless and generous individual,” Susan tells Good Things Guy.

Ilan explains that despite all of Musa’s challenges, he still pushes the 10km round trip on busy roads to get to practice every week. Missing practice is a rare thing for Musa, even with a wheelchair that is on its last wheels.

Musa’s wheelchair was broken. As Ilan explained, “The frame is cracked. No welding can salvage it. At some stage it will collapse with him in it, heaven forbid on a busy road and far from help.”

Inspired by Musa and determined to lighten his load, Ilan initiated a crowdfunding campaign to help get Musa ‘the best chair he has ever had’.

And, in a remarkable turn for Musa, this crowdfunding campaign was met with overwhelming support. In just two days, Musa’s campaign was fully funded by people all over South Africa, many of whom shared love, support and words of encouragement.

But the momentum didn’t stop there. Musa’s campaign kept going, to the point where in 3 days, it has surpassed its target at a current total of R42,150 (the original goal was R30,000).

This means that Musa will now have extra funds that will be aimed at adult-based learning and other essentials like shoes, a backpack, axles and tyres.

The way South Africa came together for Musa is nothing short of remarkable and goes down as a feat akin to any Springbok victory in our books!