Cape Town- In a strange twist of fate, a blind reformed gangster and a visually impaired Australian cricketer crossed paths at the League of Friends of the Blind (Lofob) in Grassy Park in early December.
December 13, 2014 is etched in Eerste River resident Rudeon Davids’s mind as the day he lost his sight but gained back his life.
“I was shot through the left eye in a gang-related incident,” Davids told the Cape Argus on Wednesday. “I believe it was a targeted shooting.”
Davids explained that the leader of the gang he belonged to had called a meeting, a “strategy” session that would later be foiled by gunfire.
“They (the rival gang) just started shooting, they shot me with a shotgun,” he said.
The last things that Davids saw on that fateful day was the barrel of the gun held by a member of the rival gang whose face held no remorse. “He knew he shot me and did it again,” he added.
Three bullets remain lodged in his skull because doctors feared that removing them could potentially cause extensive brain damage.
Despite this, Davids views his disability as a blessing, commenting that when he had the gift of sight he could not see as clearly as he does now. This is what gave him the courage to make a change.
“The gangs I was with, I am no longer with them. Now I focus on my family and learning to live independently with my cane by my side.”
Davids is one of many blind people Australian fast bowler Raymond Moxley hopes to help by donating 101 walking canes and 58 cane tips, estimated to cost R60 000, through the White Cane Initiative.
Moxley, who was born with ocular albinism, participated in the Blind Cricket World Cup that was held in Cape Town last December and saw the need to assist the often marginalised blind community in assisting them to gain confidence and their independence.
“Seeing people here without access to canes was quite upsetting.
“I happen to be associated with some people in Australia who could do some fundraising,” he said.
He mobilised in Australia to raise awareness and in the process collected canes which he brought into the country at his own expense.
Pointing to a woman who was on her way to the garden, tapping her cane on the skirting, the executive director of the League of Friends of the Blind, Armand Bam, said: “This is the importance of the canes.”
He also emphasised that the canes would assist visually impaired individuals find employment.
The canes were handed over at an acknowledgment function that was held at the Shalimar Gardens and Conference Centre in Surrey Estate on Wednesday night.
Cape Argus