Almost one year ago on 14 October 2014, John Le Roux woke up blind. He’d noticed something was wrong the afternoon prior, when his vision turned milky while he was packing away the contest site at the 2014 Hurley SA Junior Champs. That night, John, who has worked tirelessly behind-the-scenes at so many surfing events in South Africa over the years, lost his vision and it completely changed his life.
In a surfing accident 15 years ago at Supertubes, John lost vision in his left eye. One year ago he lost sight in his good right eye too.
For months there was no hope of recovery, until John’s ophthalmologist discovered an experimental stem cell procedure in San Francisco. And now that there was a chance for John to get his sight back, his son Jevon Le Roux, a champion surfer during the nineties, has set up a GoFundMe campaign to raise enough funds for his father to receive the treatment and regain part of his vision.
The cost of the treatment is estimated at US$30 000. If you are able to help out, you’re encouraged to head over to the GoFundMe page and make a small donation. Click here to visit the donation page and for more details.
