Celebrate Life

Marius Barnard was a South African cardiac surgeon and inventor of critical illness insurance. He was a member of the team, headed by his brother Christiaan Barnard that performed the world's first human-to-human heart transplant. Barnard was so motivated by the financial hardship he saw his patients suffer after he had treated their critical illnesses, that he convinced South African insurance companies to introduce a new type of insurance to cover critical illnesses. This has become known as Dread Disease.

Barnard argued that, as a medical doctor, he can repair a man physically, but only insurers can repair a patient's finances. On 6 October 1983 the first critical illness insurance policy was launched.

SARLA has over the last few years seen and felt the impact that a critical illness and disability can have on one of its own. It may be that the individual needs some financial support, but very often it is more than this. It is about helping to lift a man's spirit, to give him reason to live, to allow him to Celebrate Life with his loved ones and friends. And so on 5 February 2010 the Legends Life Trust was launched to make a contribution in helping ex rugby players with critical illnesses and disabilities, CELEBRATE LIFE.

We accepted that the Trust will not have the financial resources to repair an individual's finances, however its contribution may well allow the financial resources of the individual to be used in areas that ensure the individual can Celebrate Life and not merely exist. In this regard, the approach of the Trust will be more holistic in nature and look to work with the individual and his family to sustainably address a key issue that will ensure an improved quality of life. In this respect the Trust acknowledges that the financial contribution may well not be one off in nature and that it will need to commit to a period of support.

The trustees in looking at and reviewing who should receive support, will look to support individuals who have a disability arising from bodily injury, illness, disease, loss of use or derangement of any body part, organ system or organ function or surgical operation of such a nature that the individual is permanently, continuously and wholly prevented from engaging what was prior to the disability was a normal daily routine and/so that this has led to the individual having to seek alternative financial support and/or has led to the individual and/or his family having to change their lives and/or has led to significant emotion stress that requires external support.

The definition is intentionally broad to allow the trustees freedom to support as broad a range of requests, in an individualized way as the financial resources of the trust will permit. The reality is there will be more requests than the trust will be able to support and hence finance will be the ultimate constraining factor.

Make a Difference