- A school principal, whose wife shared their Covid-19 journey publicly in the hope of creating awareness, has died.
- He died days before what would have been their 32nd wedding anniversary.
- Wayne Sparrow reportedly stated that anybody who thought Covid-19 was just flu would sing another tune if they could swop places with him.
A Somerset West school principal, whose wife shared their Covid-19 journey publicly in the hope of creating awareness, has died.
Netwerk24 reported that 58-year-old Wayne Sparrow had stated that anybody who thought Covid-19 was just a light flu would sing another tune if they could swop places with him.
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He and his wife, Yvette, would have been married for 32 years this year, but he died days before their anniversary.
Yvette was discharged from hospital last weekend.
She said people wondered why she is so open about their health struggle, but she hoped she could convince at least one person to follow precautions and not contract the virus.
Sparrow was the principal of Helderberg Primary School since 2001.
After his death, former pupils paid tribute to him and a parent remembered how he had taken the temperature of the children as though they were his own.
The Sparrows' son, Dale, said medical staff are traumatised by the Covid-19 invisible enemy and are asking people to wear their masks and stay at home.
"It is the best advice I can give," Dale said.
"We never expected it to happen to us."
News of Sparrow's death comes as two schools in Pretoria are mourning the deaths of their respective principals.
Maragon Mooikloof's Chris Zaayman, 56, died in the early hours of Tuesday, while Laerskool Generaal Beyers principal George Henry Parker died on New Year’s Eve after battling the virus.
- Compiled by Jenni Evans
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