Durban - The family of popular DJ Neville Pillay are not ready to say goodbye to the entertainment icon, who is in the final stages of kidney failure and in need of an urgent organ transplant.
Artists, comedians and close friends have banded together to throw a fundraising event for the 43-year-old.
“We are not going to lose him. I am sure we will get assistance and get him the help he needs,” said ex-wife Carol Pillay, who has left her job to take care of him.
He was well known as a presenter on Lotus FM, where he hosted the breakfast show.
According to Carol, diabetic Pillay suffered a heart attack in October last year. She said what Pillay really needed was an organ transplant.
“Neville is not doing well. After dialysis he struggles to speak. This has been a very difficult time for our family,” she said.
Pillay and Carol have two daughters, aged 8 and 17.
Jordan, 17, wrote a long heartfelt message on Facebook about her dad’s condition and the pain of seeing him fade away. Jordan said Pillay needs about R20000 a month to afford dialysis and appealed for help.
She continued: "This has led us to unfortunate events in the past 10 months, where hospitals refused him treatment and at the moment, has nowhere to be dialysed.
No matter how much my dad wants to get up and work again, he just can't because he is unable to.
My dad has been putting smiles on people's faces, filling their hearts with joy but today he can barely speak a sentence.
Due of my dad's heart condition and the side effects of dialysis, his vocal cords are severely strained, which is ironic since my dad speaks for a living. My parents are divorced and my mom had to leave work to take care of my dad as there is no other family that we have to support us, financially and emotionally.
It's been a really a tough road especially as a teenager - to watch my dad fade away. Nobody could comprehend that this sickness could bring about the unimaginable amount of tears, stress and trauma.
We've had a few guardian angels along this journey that have assisted my dad in having a port put in and have covered the expenses too, but dialysis is a constant treatment required for his survival which ranges to about R20,000 a month.
We have applied to many organisations which have turned us away and have given us false hope.
My dad needs financial aids to have a stent put in his heart and a possible kidney transplant in the near future.
A lot of people have told us, including my dad, that he is not forgotten and that he should always stay strong. He's accomplished so much in his life thus far and has so much more to live for.
My little sister is only 8 and I'm only 17. We really need our dad and many other people out there need him too.
I pray the people that I'm able to reach out to really open up their hearts because it's the reversal of roles where the presenter needs help, not the listener. My dad has much to offer this world. He's an actor, comedian, presenter, MC. But most importantly, he's a father and husband to a family that loves him unconditionally and would do anything to save him.
So I humbly reach out to you guys to please take my request out there and restore our faith that there is still goodness in this really harsh world.
God bless you, I look forward to hearing from you soon. Please do this for me and my little sister"
Love
Jordan Pillay ♡"
Details of the fundraising event are yet to be finalised, but Carol said it is expected to be held next month.