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THE STORY OF COMPASSION

“Dad, Don’t Let Me Die”

Sometimes, compassion comes at a moment when everything seems hopeless.
Sometimes, a simple decision to help can become the difference between life and death.

This is the true story of Teslim Olaonipekun, a 15-year-old student of Lagos State Senior Model College, Kankon, Badagry.

Teslim had a domestic accident. According to his father, he fell from a staircase and sustained internal bleeding.

He was taken to a private hospital and subsequently referred to the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) for emergency surgery.

But when his father got to LASUTH and was confronted with a medical bill of about ₦800,000, he became discouraged. He simply could not afford it.
With no money to pay for the treatment, Teslim was taken back home—still in pain and in desperate need of medical attention.

Then came the words that would touch the heart of everyone who eventually heard his story:
“Dad, don’t let me die.”

Teslim’s father sent his son’s picture and the details of his condition to the Chairman of the Parents Forum. I am the Vice Chairman.

On the afternoon of Sunday, May 31, 2026, the Chairman contacted me.

I immediately called Teslim’s father. He told me that he had no money and had almost given up. 😞🥹
I could not simply listen and do nothing as the Executive Director of Reaching out to teenagers Initiative.

I asked him to bring Teslim to Ifako-Ijaiye General Hospital. I contacted some of my doctor friends, and I met them there.

From there, we proceeded together to LASUTH with Teslim, who was still in considerable pain.

We were not sure what the outcome would be, but we were determined to give him a second chance at life.

As I looked at Teslim, the words “Dad, don’t let me die” kept ringing in my heart.
I could not stop thinking about him as though he were my own son.

Teslim’s father and mother had no money at all.
I looked at them and reassured them:
“Teslim will be fine.”

A doctor friend who works at LASUTH later joined us, and Teslim was given the urgent medical attention he needed.

We needed close to ₦600,000 for medical tests, blood, surgical materials and other emergency expenses.
At that moment, I said to myself:
“Teslim is my son. He must not die.”

Although I did not have much, I did the little I could then escalated Teslim’s matter by bringing in RTI, and with the swift approval of the Board of Trustees we were able to assist in making the necessary payments.

I could not go home.
At about 3:00 a.m. on Monday morning, Teslim was taken into the operating theatre.

We waited.
We prayed.
We hoped.
Then, around 6:30 a.m., the news we had all been waiting for came:
THE SURGERY WAS SUCCESSFUL!

Teslim had been given a second chance at life.
I was overwhelmed with gratitude to God.

God had used ordinary people, through the Reaching Out to Teenagers Initiative (RTI) and the Parents Forums of Lagos Model Junior and Senior Colleges, to intervene in the life of a child whose family had almost lost hope.

But the story did not end there.
I reached out to friends both in Nigeria and abroad, and together we raised additional funds to support Teslim’s recovery and continuing medical needs.
THIS IS NOT A NIGERIAN MOVIE.

This is real life.

This is what compassion looks like.
Compassion is not simply feeling sorry for someone.
Compassion is seeing a problem and deciding to do something about it.

We cannot wait until someone is our child, our brother, our sister, our relative or our close friend before we care.

Teslim was not my son by blood, but at that moment, he became my son in my heart.

His desperate cry
“Dad, don’t let me die”
reminded me that every child is someone’s precious son or daughter.
Every life matters.
Every child deserves a chance.

And sometimes, God places a stranger in our path because He wants to use us to become the answer to that person’s prayer.

Today, Teslim is alive because people chose to care.

LET COMPASSION SPEAK.
LET COMPASSION ACT.
LET COMPASSION SAVE LIVES.

This is the story of Teslim.
This is the story of hope.
This is the story of compassion.