A local athlete and former drug addict, Denver van der Bergh, is set to publish a new book entitled How hard could it be. It will tell the story of his fight against drug addiction and road to recovery.
Van der Bergh made headlines earlier this year when he ran 1 861 km from Cape Town via the Eastern Cape to KwaZulu-Natal to take part this year’s Comrades Ultra Marathon in June for charity. His aim was to raise much-needed funds for drug addicts who cannot afford the professional services of rehabilitation centres. Van der Bergh was a client at the Ramot Addiction Treatment Centre in Toner Street, Parow on his journey to recovery.
He managed to raise more than R51 410 at the Comrades, which took place on Sunday 8 June.
Van der Bergh started writing his book when he came out of rehab to help him deal with unresolved childhood issues and to dig a bit deeper into where it all went wrong.
“This is an activity that started in Ramot. I noted everything down; Covid-19, college, mending a broken relationship with my dad, staying sober, love for running and running to the Comrades.”
The book is currently being edited.
Van der Bergh also started a non-profit company, the Serenity Strides Foundation, and said he planned to continue raising funds through future runs. These would be for rehabilitation centres and to help put disadvantaged children through college.
