Reg. Nr. 098-701 NPO
SARS PBO Nr. 930051064
The Paul Steyn Foundation is a SARS registered , Section 18A, public benefit non-profit organization, founded in 2011 by Paul Steyn, an amputee, for the benefit of amputees.
About Us
Reg. Nr. 098-701 NPO
SARS PBO Nr. 930051064
The Paul Steyn Foundation is a SARS registered , Section 18A, public benefit non-profit organization, founded in 2011 by Paul Steyn, an amputee, for the benefit of amputees.
Mission
The main objective of the Paul Steyn Foundation is to raise funds to assist disadvantaged amputees, who have no other means to acquire it, with prosthetic limbs.
In addition the Paul Steyn Foundation strives to be mouthpiece for amputees and endeavours to raise awareness with the public, policy makers and other stakeholders about the plight of amputees in general and the cost of, and access to, prosthetic limbs in particular.
Stated Objectives
To provide an organization that will benefit amputees i.e.
- Share experiences
- Ask and reply to relevant questions
- Support each other
- Raise and discuss problems
- Bring the plight of amputees to the attention of the general public as well as medical organizations, corporate entities and NGO’s.
- Enter on behalf of amputees into discussions with relevant government organizations (national and provincial) on particular problems brought to the attention of the foundation by amputees.
- Raise funds through corporate sponsorships, special projects and donations from private individuals and companies. These funds will be utilized mainly to benefit individual amputees.
- Have, as secondary objective, an active collaboration with organizations with similar ethos and value systems.
- Engage in such ancillary and complementary activities as may be deemed expedient from time to time.
Who is Paul Steyn?
Paul Steyn’s right leg was amputated after an accident at school in February 2000 when he was thirteen years old. His leg was caught in the blades of a lawn mower pulled behind a tractor. Doctors tried their best to save the leg, but after gangerine set in after nearly six months in hospital, it was decided to amputate. The leg was amputated below the knee.
After leaving hospital, Paul briefly went back to the school where the accident took place. Because of family difficulties, he was taken into foster care and later went to the Abraham Kriel children’s home in Potchefstroom.
Paul did various jobs after he left school. In 2008, he decided to further his education. Because he is dyslexic, it was difficult to convince an institution to allow him to study. After having been rejected many times he was eventually accepted at Boland College in Worcester.
During his second year, Paul was elected to the Students Representative Council. He was tasked with community projects and fundraising for the projects. This experience created a passion in him for community work.
Due to difficulties in keeping up with his studies, he decided during 2010 to drop out. His experiences on the SRC prompted him to start The Paul Steyn Foundation a year later.
When Paul is not working on a project for the Paul Steyn Foundation, he works in the media field as a photographer and videographer . He is a part time stuntman, and has appeared in various movies an television series for local and overseas production companies, where he was featured in scenes utilising his amputated leg.
Paul has a driven passion for what he considers to be his life mission and feels that he has the capacity, and duty, to make a difference in the lives of other people in a similar situation as he is in.
What we do
Raising Funds
The Paul Steyn Foundation raises funds to provide deserving disadvantaged amputees with prosthetic limbs. We raise the funds through various projects, but mainly through long distance fund raising walks undertaken by the founder, Paul Steyn, an amputee himself.
By undertaking the walks, Paul also endeavours to demonstrate to the public, and to amputees, the mobility that a prosthesis can provide to an amputee.
Paul has walked;
- 360km – Montagu to Cape Town in February 2012.
- 810km – Port Elizabeth to Cape Town in October 2012.
- 220km – Around the Cape Pininsula and through the Cape Town Metro area in May 2013.
- 460km – From Cape Town to Somerset West, via Malmesbury, Tulbagh, Worcester, McGregor, Caledon and Franschhoek during October 2013.
- 230km – Agulhas to Kleinmond during March 2014 as part of the annual RealNet Golf Day in aid of the Paul Steyn Foundation.
- 630km – Saldanha to Gordon’s Bay via Clanwilliam, Porterville, Piketberg, Saldanha, Malmesbury, Wellington, Worcester and Paarl during July 2013.
- 97km – On crutches from Wellington to the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town during November 2014, to highlight the plight of many amputees who cannot afford prosthetic limbs.
- 115km – Parys to Orkney via Potchefstroom and Klerksdorp during May 2015.
- 7000km – From August 2015 to December 2016, Paul walked through the nine provinces of South Africa. The journey took him fifteen months and he visited about 120 different towns and cities. He gave motivational talks to more than 100 000 school children on the route.
Support
As part of the activities of the Paul Steyn Foundation, Paul visits people whose limbs had recently been amputated, to talk to them and lend moral support and provide encouragement to them during the recovery process.
Currently, Paul can only visit hospitals in the Greater Cape Town area, but his vision is to ultimately set up support groups nationally.
Awareness
One of the primary objectives of the Paul Steyn Foundation is to create awareness to the public and the government about the prohibatative cost of prosthetic limbs in South Africa, as well as the inadequate access to prosthetics for people dependant on the state.
The Foundation also wants to bring the day to day difficulties that amputees, especially those without the means to get prosthetic limbs to the attention of the public.
Old and redundant prosthetics
We collect old prosthetic limbs to have reconfigured for disadvantaged new recipients. Please contact us if you have any unused prosthesis that are no longer used. It can make a huge difference in someone else’s life.
Motivational Talks
Paul visits schools, churches and other groups of people to tell them about his work and why he is doing it. Paul’s story is truly inspirational.
Paul is a commited Christian and loves to bear witness to the greatness of God and how He has helped him achieve his goals, both in life and in his work.