Cornelius Basson, Lentegeur
The Basson family, from Lentegeur, honour Chad Basson, 20, who was murdered two years ago.
For a great late son. Our hero.
On Friday August 14 we as a family celebrated what would have been my late son Chad Basson’s 22nd birthday.
He was brutally murdered on Saturday July 28 2018.
At his funeral I paid tribute to him from the pulpit but two years later I feel I did not honour and do his memory justice.
I was in a haze, a bubble and neglected to emphasise his heroic death, when he shielded others, who were in the firing line.
It was only afterward that I uncovered more information, which I am now able to digest.
Chad was shot and killed after attending a 21st birthday party in Lentegeur in July 2018.
Newspapers dubbed him the “teen hero”.
Witnesses said he had had ample time to save himself but instead he decided to be a martyr and saved people.
What made his actions so extraordinary was that he did not know any of the people he saved.
Two other teenage boys were shot in their legs and a girl, whom he had enveloped with his tiny body, escaped unscathed.
My hero son paid the ultimate price by sacrificing his own precious young life.
He still had so much to offer and had great plans for the future.
Until today, we sometimes ask why he had to be a hero.
That was just how my son was, thinking of others first.
Heck, he would even have saved a gangster if circumstances dictated.
Chad was known as the best hugger and had tons of love and compassion for others.
It is ironic that these wonderful attributes ultimately led to his death.
One can only hope that the people that he saved and others will grab this second opportunity in life.
My son was not given a second chance and could not make other meaningful contributions to life.
The arrest of some suspects and others who have died in custody are small comfort to our close-knit family.
Life for us will never be the same just because of trigger-happy criminals, who had scant regard for human life.
Finally, I want to thank God for lending us this amazing, wonderful gift for almost 20 years as well as those who still try to keep his memory alive.
Heaven needed a hero, my son, and whilst you were on earth you were a true son of the soil and made an indelible mark in the lives of many.
I am jealous of the angels around the throne.