Joshua Petersen's fight for survival: A mother's plea for support after a tragic school bullying incident

With mounting medical costs, unemployment and a teenage son left permanently paralysed after a school stabbing, a Durban family says they have been left with no choice but to reach out to the public for help.

Joshua Petersen, from Marianhill in Durban, recently took to social media pleading for assistance with essential medical supplies after the stabbing at Westridge High School during school hours last year left him quadriplegic.

The teenager’s mother, Bernadette Petersen, said their lives changed forever after Joshua was stabbed twice once in the neck and once in the abdomen during what she described as a bullying incident at school.

“The reality is we cannot do this alone anymore,” she said. “Joshua needs catheters, urine bags and diapers constantly, and these things are expensive. We never imagined we would be in this position.”

According to Bernadette, the incident happened during the second week of the school term when Joshua was walking to the tuck shop during break time.

“It started with a bump,” she recalled. “Joshua apologised and wanted to walk away from the situation, but the boy kept accusing him of making a fool of him.”

She said the other learner then allegedly pulled out a knife and stabbed Joshua twice.

“I was called from the school because nobody wanted to pay for the ambulance,” Bernadette said. “I told them they needed to help my son first because I was too far away to get there immediately.”

Joshua’s injuries changed his life forever.

It was previously reported that his doctor, Dr Ramendhra Naidoo, confirmed that Joshua had become quadriplegic and would never regain the use of his arms and legs.

Now confined to a bed and wheelchair, Joshua depends entirely on his mother for every aspect of daily living.

“As a mother, it was devastating,” Bernadette said. “I went cold when I found out my son would never walk again. But I had to put my feelings aside because he’s the one going through this.”

She explained that her days are spent turning Joshua every two hours, feeding him, comforting him through panic attacks and seizures, bathing him, and changing catheters and diapers.

“He wasn’t born paralysed. He knew how to walk and live normally, and now everything changed because of a stabbing,” she said.

The family said the emotional trauma has been compounded by severe financial struggles.

Joshua now survives on a disability grant, while his father lost his job after repeatedly missing work to attend court proceedings and care for his son during repeated hospital visits.

“A disability grant is not enough to survive on,” Bernadette said.

The learner who stabbed Joshua was recently sentenced to five years’ imprisonment following a lengthy court process that involved multiple appeals.

Bernadette also criticised the school’s handling of the incident, claiming the family received little support afterwards.

“No teachers visited him. Nobody checked on him or even sent condolences,” she said.

She further alleged that the then-principal failed to report the stabbing to the education department and was later dismissed.

Despite everything, Joshua remains determined to continue building a future for himself.

Before the attack, he had been studying motor mechanics and was described by his mother as an A-grade learner passionate about cars and engineering.

Now, he uses a pen held in his mouth to operate his cellphone and hopes to one day obtain a laptop so he can complete matric and continue pursuing his dream career.

“He still wants to become a motor mechanic, even from a wheelchair,” Bernadette said.

She said physiotherapy continues in the hope that he may regain movement in his hands.

For Bernadette, giving up has never been an option.

“There’s a saying in our family that nobody gets left behind,” she said. “When one person can’t walk forward, we carry them. That’s what I’m doing for my son.”

She also urged parents to advocate fiercely for their children when bullying or violence occurs at schools.

“Don’t give up on your child. Fight for them,” she said. “People must speak out because things like this cannot just be ignored.”

Joshua is in need of various medical supplies, ranging from medication, oxygen tanks, nappies, gauze swabs and much more.

Anyone willing to help the family can contact Bernadette on: 060 369 0500

[email protected]

Weekend Argus