02 Aug 2018

For the past six years, life has not been a bed of roses for the Kemoreile family in Jwaneng, but the couple has managed to stick together and sail through the storm. 

Life was much better before Mr Philip Kemoreile’s wife of 31 years, Ms Jane Kemoreile slipped and fell at work, sustaining a back injury that left her paralysed and wheel chair-bound. As if that was not enough, she lost her sight due to depression after losing her job. However, the two have proven to be a solid rock of love during these trying times. 

Mr Kemoreile’s eyes are fixed on his wife as he talks about the love he has for her, saying although life was not easy, he cherishes the years he spent with the mother of his three children and looks forward to a future with her.

“Jane cannot see, walk or even perform any house chores but she remains my dear wife, and I sacrifice everything for her. I was once offered a job but I turned down the offer because Jane was going to suffer in my absence. She is my gift and I still maintain the marriage vows that I took back in 1987,” said Mr Kemoreile who has turned to farming to sustain his family. Ms Kemoreile chipped in to add that her husband has been her pillar of strength and support, especially during the time she was going through several surgeries. She said her husband was one in a million soulmate who has sacrificed everything to meet her demands. Ms Kemoreile was born in 1955 and six months later, she was diagnosed with polio and at the time there was no vaccine. 

Although a vaccine was discovered later, it was not helpful for Ms Kemoreile as it was said to work efficiently at birth. 

Her parents rushed her from hospital to hospital and crossed borders to seek medical attention and their prayers were answered as a specialist later successfully did surgery on her in Zimbabwe.

 She later came to Botswana in 1970 to pursue her studies and although she was not completely healed from polio at that time, she caught Mr Kemoreile’s eye and they later got married. She said she enrolled with Princess Marina Hospital to study laboratory technology and immediately started work there. 

She was later employed by Anglo American/DeBeers Company in 1982 and worked for the company for 29 years before her accident in 2011. 

She was forced to leave the lucrative job and nurse the injury and later lost her sight due to stress as her blood pressure rose above the limit and raptured the eye nerves leaving her visually impaired. 

“This man is an angel, you can imagine having to wake up every hour in the middle of the night to give me my hourly medication. Somebody could have given up but Phillip stood by me. Our love has grown to greater heights in this trying time,” she said. Mr Kemoreile affirmed his love for his visually impaired wife and emphasised that she was a gift from God. He said their love has been tried and tested but they remain solid and stuck to each other.

“Marriage is a commitment and it has to be treated holy. You don’t have to run around and cheat because your spouse is going through a problem. This situation is ours, she does not have to walk alone. The Lord has uniquely blessed us and only death can do us part,” emphasised Mr  Kemoreile. Although both of them cannot remember their wedding date, they both smile and say ngwanaka, ke bogologolo tota, re tswa kgakala. The couple survive on pension, farming and disability allowance. 

They advise young couples that marriage means commitment especially during difficult times. The pair has seen it all and they can safely say, “in sickness and in health……”. They have defied all odds and they are a living testimony that true love and marriage do exist. ENDS