Some of the special children we helped in 2015

Aidan Bush

Aidan has diplegic cerebral palsy. He is thirteen years old. Aidan is a fun loving boy and a bit of a practical joker and has a very infectious laugh. His condition means he finds it difficult to mobilise so he is confined to a wheel chair. He also finds speech a challenge making it difficult for him to be understood, and this has an impact on his self-confidence and makes him reluctant to join in at times. This also hinders his school work as he cannot communicate the answers which he knows making him very frustrated.

Aidan has had the use of an iPad which really helped him, as he was able to type the words he cannot not say, improving his confidence. Wipe Away Those Tears were delighted to provide Aidan with an iPad.

Alexander Batt

Alexander has an unspecified spinal cord injury/growth deficiency that seemingly occurred in the womb and is under a number of Great Ormond Street and Royal Brompton Hospital Consultants. Alex had a spinal operation at 9 months at Ormond Street for spinal cord tethering. It looks like the operation has not solved his issue, which means he has virtually no motor control in either of his legs and no motor control of his right hand. He also has chronic postural and core stability issues meaning he is very limited in his ability to balance in a sitting position and cannot sit up by himself.

Alex also has leakage of food/liquid into his lungs as part of a flawed swallowing ability and is awaiting a date for the insertion of a gastrostomy feeding tube as he is unable to eat or drink enough to maintain development. Though he has regular physiotherapy, he is making little improvement and it seems there is no more intervention that is likely to improve the situation. When he is well, he is a very happy little chap though and enjoys playing with his sister who is very good with him.

Alex is more or less completely immobile and his dad wrote to Wipe Away Those Tears in the hope that we could fund a specialist wheelchair which will grow with him until the age of 9. Alex is now making full use of this wheelchair with love from Wipe Away Those Tears.

Alice Foxton

Alice is 3 years old. She has a rare genetic syndrome called FOXG1 Syndrome. She suffers from Global Developmental Delay, and hypertonia (weak muscles) and is also non-verbal. She’s a lovely, smiley little girl but is unable to sit, stand or walk without full assistance. She has recently started to try out a walker. She likes it although is finding it hard to get the hang of.

Her mum wrote to ask whether we could purchase an Upsee walker for Alice. Here is a photo of Alice in her new walker. Her mum says she absolutely loves it and has opened up a whole new world for her. They use it at her nursery, where Alice is now able to play football.

The other children are very excited that Alice can join in too and when they first saw her, they kept saying “Alice is walking!”

Annabel Smith

Annabel is 13 and was diagnosed with a brain tumour in May 2013.

The tumour was fully removed at Great Ormond Street hospital and thankfully it was benign.

However she later developed posterior fossa syndrome, a condition which occasionally occurs after brain surgery.

She has had to relearn all physical functions, including walking, talking and swallowing. As a result, Annabel’s speech was slow and slurred which greatly affected her confidence.

Her mum wrote to us to see if we would be able to fund speech therapy sessions.

We are delighted to learn after funding these session that there has been a huge improvement in the quality of Annabel’s speech and her confidence has soared.

Joshua Wallace

Joshua is 10 months old and has t21 Downs Syndrome. He is not able to sit up himself and becomes very frustrated and upset as a result.

At his nursery he loved using the Lecky Squiggles Early Activity Velcro System because it gave him the ability to do a lot more himself, including sitting up independently.

Wipe Away Those Tears were thrilled to provide Joshua with his own, as well as sensory lights to keep him calm. He is now able to sit up and play at home.

Lilybet Pittman

Lilybet is recovering from an aggressive grade four brain tumour. She is also deaf as a result of the chemotherapy she endured.

Wipe Away Those Tears sent Lilybet and her family to Euro Disney, where they all had a wonderful time.

Her mum wrote and said “we cherish every special opportunity we can and live day by day cherishing every moment and social memories.

Zack Bassett

Zack is a fun-loving 11 year old boy who has Downs Syndrome. He was born prematurely and spent the first nine weeks of his life in special care. Zack needed a lot of help but was walking by the age of four.

Zack now goes to a wonderful SEN school where he is gaining confidence and making friends in his own right, however he still struggles heavily with fine and gross motor skills, as well as balance and communication.

He had the opportunity to try out a specialist trike and after lots of coaxing Zack decided he would have a go. His mum was so overwhelmed – Zack was riding a trike, his posture and comfort looked so right, and the joy and laughter he was displaying was wonderful to see.

Wipe Away Those Tears were delighted to purchase a specialist trike for Zack, and from the photo below you can see how happy this has made him.

William Baker

William is 5 years old and both he and his brother, aged 3, have Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

William is now at an age and size where his current high back booster car seat no longer gives him the support he needs whilst travelling in the car, especially if he falls asleep, which he regularly does. In addition, due to his size and weight, his parents now find it very difficult to lift him in and out of the car.

Wipe Away Those Tears are delighted to provide the Baker family with a specialist car seat to make travelling a lot more comfortable for William.

Rose-Maria Peters

Rose-Maria was born on Christmas Eve 2011. It took a year for her to be diagnosed with a rare disease called Joubert Syndrome. This affects her Global Development, coordination and balance. Rose-Maria has been through two years of feeding difficulties, but things are now getting better. She is now managing to stand for thirty minutes per day.

Her mum wrote to Wipe Away Those Tears to request assistance in purchasing a specialist car seat. We are delighted to provide this for her.

Elisha Chappel

Elisha is 14 years old and suffered brain damage as a result of a foetal maternal transfusion prior to her birth. She has cerebral palsy which affects all four of her limbs and she is therefore permanently in a wheelchair.

Elisha has to be moved using slings and hoists. Being incontinent, she has to be hoisted several times a day in order to change her.

Her parents wrote to Wipe Away Those Tears to see if we could assist in purchasing a mobile hoist for Elisha, which costs just over £2,000. We are delighted to purchase this item.