Their baby son’s near-drowning and their gratitude for his recovery inspired a young mother and father from Hartbeespoort to create an organisation to assist other parents in the same position, but who don’t have the financial means, to save their children.

Leandre Spies and Edrik who is now a healthy and happy 11-year-old boy.

The idea for the non-profit organisation Prayer Bear was born at Leandre and Frikkie Spies’ son’s hospital bedside when she realised what the special care for near-drownings entails and the plight of parents who did not have the financial means.
Leandre and Frikkie’s son nearly drowned nine years ago when he was merely 19 months old. “Edrik was a lively, happy curious and adventurous boy. In 2016, he fell into a dam. Hartbeespoort Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) responded and Edrik was given advanced life support and airlifted to a hospital in Johannesburg for specialised treatment,” Leandre recalled. “HEMS owner Jerry Bouwer visited Edrik after the incident and I realised how much they cared about their patients.”
“Children who have drowning incidents need special medical treatment that not all hospitals can provide. Non-fatal drownings can result in long-term health problems and costly hospital stays and treatment. We were in the fortunate position to have medical aid. At the hospital, I realised other parents were not so fortunate.”
The idea for Prayer Bear came when a close friend brought Edrik a teddy bear. “As we received Bible verses from people, we started writing them on the bear. The bear never left Edrik’s bed.”
Leandre and Frikkie registered the Prayer Bear NGO to support parents of children who nearly drowned. And then in a strange turn of events, Leandre found employment at HEMS. “When Jerry learned of our idea, he fully supported us and HEMS became a partner in the initiative and it took flight.”
Prayer Bear raises funds for children to assist those who don’t have the means or funds for the appropriate medical treatment. Since its inception, the organisation has helped five children who needed specialised transport and hospital care.
One such case is that of the then-one-year-old Ruvan Jansen van Vuuren who nearly drowned in a dam at a resort in De Wildt in 2020. “Ruvan immediately needed urgent medical care. HEMS’s paramedic gave him advanced life support treatment while transporting him to a private hospital in Brits. Children who have drowning incidents need special medical treatment that not all hospitals can provide. Ruvan was airlifted to an appropriate hospital in Johannesburg where he received the necessary medical treatment he needed.
Unfortunately, Ruvan’s parents did not have any medical coverage, or the necessary funds to pay for the treatment. Funds were raised by Prayer Bear to sponsor the treatment as well as the costs for the flight to the hospital in Johannesburg. Prayer Bear and the HEMS team enabled Ruvan to recover fully. Today he is a healthy little boy enjoying life,” Leandre said.
“Besides helping near-drowning victims, Prayer Bear also assists burn victims. “During the course of our work, we encountered small burn victims in the same financial situation and we now assist with these cases as well,” Leandre said.
The organisation recently also sponsored the emergency helicopter flight that flew crocodile attack victim, Jeandré Blom (7), to a hospital with specialised care facilities.
“There are so many small children who do not get the necessary care following such incidents because of financial obstacles. Our aim is to help these small victims in our community and enable them to live healthy lives after the traumatic incidents.”