HIV-positive teen author and terminally ill learner triumph in matric exams
Cape Town - Two matriculants have shown true strength and determination and did not let their illnesses and circumstances define them when they passed their final exams, with plans to make the world a better place.
Young author, Ashlynne van Wyk, 18, from Kuils River, was born with HIV and has been open about her status since the release and launch of her first book, titled Myself, God & HIV, published by Shofar Publications in 2023.
She shared her pride and relief at being successful in passing her examinations.
From a young age, Van Wyk knew there was something different with her body after she suffered from severe pain and fatigue.
She sadly lost her mother to AIDS at a young age.
She is also an elected board member of AHI(SA) ² (Adolescent HIV Prevention and Treatment Implementation on Science Alliance), forming part of the Youth Research aimed at equipping the youth with how to deal with their HIV status.
Van Wyk attended Western Cape Sports High School and was athletic and part of the netball team.
She said despite having to take medication daily, she believed God kept her healthy throughout her Grade 12 year in order to write her exams.
“I am so happy and I can only thank God for being with me up until now,” she said.
“I experienced mood swings due to the medication.”
She dreams of becoming a social worker in order to help others like herself.
“For the learners of 2025, they must work hard, stay dedicated and disciplined and believe me that extra classes help so do it always and never skip it,” she said.
When her mother died, Van Wyk was placed in the care of her aunt, Pastor Charmaine Daniels, who is a former police officer and spiritual leader and has written a book of her own, Breaking Through Truths.
“The timing of God, it can be done,” she said.
“No sickness or status can define them.
“We always trust God,” she said.
“I get so emotional if I think about where she came from, since the time she came into my life, we both have navigated.
“Ashlynne is very structured and hard working and sometimes it is not the outcome you want.”
“She had to stay faithful to God.
Daniels said she was proud of Van Wyk’s bravery in revealing her status and being part of AHI(SA) ²
Another brave young woman is 18-year-old Zoë Okkers, who has defied the odds and managed to reach matric despite being terminally ill and losing her mother to sickness.
Okkers was adopted by couple, Gaynor and her husband, Niel, when she was just four months old.
The family has asked for Okkers’s illness to remain private.
Her mother died in 2020, when her high school career began and the world faced the global Covid-19 pandemic.
Okkers’s sister, Annastazia Hendricks, has also been the driving force behind her studies, encouraging her as she completed her final year at Cedar High School, Mitchell’s Plain.
“I felt overwhelmed and I checked the WCED website at 1am and saw that I had passed and when I was at the school there were some of my peers who didn't make it, so that was very hard to see.
“My sister pushed me, there were times when I was crying but I now see what I put in has paid off.
“I am intending on studying Film and Media at Cape Peninsula University of Technology.”
Annastazia said she was proud of her sister.
“When she received her results we took her to her primary school, Caradale to show the principal because he has been so supportive of her.”
* To find out more about Ashlynne’s book, contact Pastor Charmaine on 071 006 99 33.