Ane, the little girl who captured SA's hearts, loses her battle with cancer
Just last year Nonhle Shandu, a mother from KZN, experienced incredible generosity when she made an emotional plea for financial assistance.
In 2017 Nonhle went viral when she sent out a tweet that touched the hearts of thousands worldwide.
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Her little girl, who didn't seem to have a care in the world, was only two years old and had received a terrible diagnosis - cancer.
Ane had leukaemia, which is a blood cancer that is the result of a rise in the number of white blood cells in your body.
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For years Ane had struggled to overcome the illness and Nonhle struggled to pay the bills, even though she had started a crowdfunding account as soon as her daughter was diagnosed.
Her daughter had undergone chemotherapy since being diagnosed at the age of two and whilst on maintenance chemotherapy, she relapsed leading to them having to seek out a private oncologist.
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She quickly realised the financial burden was too much to carry and had to come up with a plan, hence the crowdfunding campaign.
Nonhle had created the account under an alias but after receiving an incredible amount of love and outpouring of love, she revealed her identity and thanked the people who had contributed over R25,000 towards the medical fees:
Stacey and J Sbu were touched by this story and also wanted to get in touch with Nonhle:
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Unfortunately, this morning (17 June 2021) we saw the devastating news that baby Ane has passed away after her hard-fought battle with cancer.
Nonhle took to Twitter to share the news:
Rest well sthandwa sami. Kubuhlungu but you fought. Phumula manje 🤍 pic.twitter.com/kGvS2fD7eX
— Nonhle 🤍 (@__Nonhle) June 17, 2021
(Rest well my love. It hurts but you fought. Relax now.)
I love you do much. You left with a huge chunk of my heart. Lala kahle sthandwa sami. pic.twitter.com/ssWhxxIy2s
— Nonhle 🤍 (@__Nonhle) June 17, 2021
Ngathi ngyasangana, I don’t know what to do with myself, Ane was always hovering around me, asking for things, grabbing my AirPods, it’s so weird to function without her. Haibo ingane yami, I saw her struggle to breathe. Haibo ibuhlungu into engikuyona.
— Nonhle 🤍 (@__Nonhle) June 17, 2021
She caught me crying and said “ma I know you’re sad coz I’m sick, don’t cry” wangihlikihla ingalo. My perfect little angel. I had so much to do with you, so much love to give you. Waze wangizuma.
— Nonhle 🤍 (@__Nonhle) June 17, 2021
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Since the news broke people have been sharing their heartfelt condolences:
You poured all your love into that precious baby, we are witnesses and therefore feel this loss with you. I carry you in my heart and prayers as you grieve while also doing the difficult work of preparing for her burial. I pray for your strength, comfort & healing. Uxolo ma💛
— Drinkerbell (@MoanerLeaser) June 17, 2021
Anentokozo fought hey, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a child that strong and smart . Even the day Nonhle tweeted about when she had to explain her illness to I think her cousin or was it Nonhle’s little brother I shed a tear.
— Nonny_Mpata (@Nonny_Mpata) June 17, 2021
Ngiyamzwela uNonhle manh 💔🥺
my heart is so sore💔 yoh💔💔💔 i can’t even begin to imagine the pain you’re going through Nonhle😔 I’ll keep you in my prayers njalo njalo, I’m so sorry 💔 RIP angel🤍 https://t.co/7yPeNzclc7
— a Knockout. (@mandisa_dandala) June 17, 2021
One of the most painful experiences is for a parent to bury their child. My prayer goes out to Nonhle, strength and light 🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️💔💔💔💔#Nonhle
— Mankgodi (@Mankgodi) June 17, 2021
My heart goes out to Nonhle.
— 𝑺𝒊𝒑𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒉𝒍𝒆 𝑵𝒅𝒂𝒃𝒂 🎭 (@ceecee_ndaba) June 17, 2021
Her and Ane fought so hard.💔
Kubhlungu.
Yoh.
May she rest easy. 🕊🤍
The family has touched so many hearts and, hopefully, Nonhle can find some kind of comfort in that during this incredibly difficult time.
May Ane rest in peace.
When you are old enough to understand, I'll tell you about how you laughed in cancer's face, that you are a fighter👑🌸 pic.twitter.com/YNrYswvx8e
— Nonhle 🤍 (@__Nonhle) July 17, 2017
Want to catch up on all your favourite duo's best moments? Listen to everything #StaceyAndJSbu below:
Main image courtesy of @__Nonhle/Twitter