After waiting many years for a home to call his own, Poto Dyantyisi from Patensie recently celebrated his 111th birthday in the comfort of a warm home surrounded by his family and friends.
As previously reported, Poto moved into his son Joseph’s shack in 2014.
However, he faced various challenges since the shack was cold in winter and very hot in summer.
As a result, Poto’s health deteriorated, leading to many health complications.
Finally, in 2024, shortly after his 110th birthday, he opened the door to his fully furnished home.
The new home was built through the Department of Human Settlements’ Destitute and Vulnerable Groups Programme, and formed part of a collaboration between the department, Kouga Municipality, and the Sarah Baartman District Municipality.
Since moving into his new home in July 2024, Joseph said that his father’s lifestyle and health have improved greatly.
“When we were staying in the shack we really battled when it rained and when it was cold, but now my father is living in much better conditions,” said Joseph.
“Even though he is getting older, he is doing well.”
Joseph further said that his father spent his birthday with family and friends with the highlight being a visit from Sarah Baartman District Municipality Executive Mayor, Deon de Vos.
He said that De Vos checks up on his father regularly and genuinely cares for his well-being.
“We appreciate Mayor De Vos for his assistance and concern for my father,” said Joseph.
“It is great to see that the Sarah Baartman District Municipality is looking after older people.”
Since he has had to leave work to take care of his father full time, Joseph said that they appreciate all the assistance they have received thus far.
He said that while his father now lives in a safe and happy environment, their biggest concern is the dirt road from the main road leading to their home.
Joseph said that the state of the road makes it difficult to transport his father to the nearest healthcare facility during rainy periods when his health deteriorates.
He added that ambulances often struggle to reach their home when the roads become muddy after rainfall.
“I become stressed whenever it starts raining because my father’s health deteriorates in wet weather. I never know when an emergency will arise and he needs to go to the hospital,” said Joseph.
He said that he hopes the roads will be upgraded soon to improve accessibility to their home.
