A father whose son would have been turning nine on Tuesday is readying himself to earn his blue number in the half marathon of the Totalsports Two Oceans Marathon.
Fred Platt says: “I’m not at my fittest so I am just looking at finishing it because it is a very special one for me and obviously for Footprints 4 Sam. Not many runners get to complete the Two Oceans on ten occasions, be it the full ultra (56km) or the 21.1km.
“Footprints 4 Sam is one of the Two Oceans Marathon charity partners having been lucky to have been a chosen beneficiary for the past few years now with the first time we were selected being the year that Covid hit and this incredible race was cancelled.”
Sam (Samuel) is Platt and his wife Melissa’s son. The boy was born on April 9, 2015 — the week of the World’s Most Beautiful Marathon, leading to Platt frequenting the hospital prior to his running his third half marathon.
“Before the 2015 race, which was my third race, Sam was about to be born. Melissa was in hospital with complications around Sam and it was a very stressful period for both of us. But I still managed to run the race.”
Little Sam lived for just over a year before he succumbed to central core disease. And though devastated by their loss, the Platts felt their son’s brief life would not be in vain.
“I always say Sam lived for 15 and a half months but he has achieved more than I have achieved in my entire life and more than people who live until 90 achieve,” Platt says.
That he says so is because of the impact that the Footprints 4 Sam — a fund-raising initiative that they started in memory of their son — has had over the years and continues to with many sports people becoming a part of it.
“The legacy and Footprints 4 Sam have always been close to running. As a father, there was not much I could do when Sam was in hospital, so I started running and raising funds for Sam and children like him. Of course, it was with the hope that he would live and when he died we came up with Footprints 4 Sam to help others.”
When he did not survive, the Platts did not give up but rather decided to have their son “live on“ through helping others.
“We have an incredible amount of people who are running 4 Sam and every year we seem to have more people wanting to get involved.”
For this weekend’s race, there will be 34 runners in the colourful Footprints 4 Sam tops doing the Two Oceans, with three participating in the ultra and the balance alongside Fred in the half marathon on Sunday.
“We sold out our charity entries in the first two days and had to buy more. Next year we will be aiming to have 50 runners on the road for Footprints 4 Sam,” Melissa says proudly.
Her husband explains just why running.
“There are so many connections between Sam and running. There’s the fact that he was on a ventilator all of his life, and we know that breathing is life. Every breath that we take when we run is fighting that battle which Sam fought so bravely for his entire life.
“Footprints 4 Sam is that every step we take as we run, we take for him. So how do we take that manual activity of running to be healthy and turn it into a purpose? And how do we impact the lives of others with those steps? For me, that’s the legacy that Sam has left.
“Every runner who sings up with Footprints 4 Sam is not just running for themselves but is using that energy and achievement of completing the Two Oceans into a lasting legacy which can assist those families who could never help themselves.
“We live in a country with so many underprivileged people, you’ve got these families that are also dealing with this incredible battle of their children being chronically ill and our runners recognise that their efforts in fundraising and raising awareness and sending a message of hope, saying that we actually care and want to make a difference.”
Melissa adds: “Sam’s journey in Paediatric Healthcare was filled with sadness and joy, one in which we saw the best and the worst of healthcare. And so, Sam’s legacy is all about how do we make a meaningful and tangible difference in the lives of underprivileged children with a chronic or life limiting illness in healthcare across South Africa, as well as support and train health professionals that serve our incredible children in the fragile and often broken world of healthcare.”
To this effect, the Footprints 4 Sam which was formed in 2017 focuses on raising funds that go towards six key initiatives which all support the dignity and hope of their young beneficiaries.
— Transport from the townships to clinic and hospital appointments
— Food and Toiletry Bucket Initiatives
— Wifi Initiatives (Communication)
— Advocacy for Human Centred Care
— Emotional Support and Training for Families and Health Professionals (includes Scholarships for Health Professionals)
— Beautiful Memories (i.e. Hospital Renovations and special events)
And there has been tangible success in all the key areas over the years with no less than 11 000 passengers (children and caregivers) having been transported, 190 000 meals provided; six key Paediatric spaces in state hospitals being renovated, provided education, support and training to hundreds of health professionals as well as provision of hope, dignity and support to hundreds of children and their families through the six key initiatives.
Nine years on, Fred still finds it hard to accept that Sam is no more.
“Losing a child, you lose your future not your past. Every day you see a father with his child, and it reminds you that you lost yours. Sometimes you see them running Two Oceans together and you realise you could never have that — because one of the biggest dreams for a running parent is to be able to run a race with your son. It is very difficult.
“Every day, Sam is the first thing I think of — in the morning and the last thing on my mind when I go to sleep at night. Whenever you see people celebrating whatever with their children, it is incredibly difficult. It is not easy, but we have reconciled ourselves to it, that it never will be easy. And so we channel our energies into doing something positives through the Footprints 4 Sam.”
Join Footprints 4 Sam, #Sweat4Sam- Share our story and help us to continue our journey of hope and meaning in Paediatric healthcare across South Africa.
Donate and help so we channel our energies into doing something positive through the Footprints 4 Sam Trust, supporting Sam’s incredible legacy!’
IOL Sport