Race for Rafe - 10,000km for £10,000
Donation protected
Rafe was born suddenly at 36 weeks, and when he was five days old he got sick very quickly. He was diagnosed with meningitis and spent over a week on a ventilator in intensive care. After three months in hospital he was discharged, but having developped hydrocephalus (excess fluid in the brain) as a result of his brain injury, we were warned that the damage was entensive and would likely lead to many medical complexities as he grew.
Today, Rafe is a lively three and a half year old who quite literally brings joy to all who meet him with his naughty little sense of humour, wild red hair and glasses always perched on the end of his nose. His brain injury has meant that he has cerebral palsy - a form called hemiplegia which affects the right side of his body (both limbs, plus eye and mouth muscles too).
We are so fortunate that to date Rafe copes with his physical limitations like a true hero, and is able to walk (albeit not entirely independently). However, the damage to the part of the brain that controls his arm and hand is so severe he has virtually zero use. We have tried the NHS supplied physio + botox (which is administered under general aneasthetic) but we are still struggling to get any functional action.
This is where constraint induced movement therapy comes in. It is an intensive form of physiotherapy shown to have great results in children with hemiplegia. In America it is offered as an absolute must-have, but sadly the NHS does not cover it in the UK. Rafe is the perfect candidate for a month long intensive to really wakeup his right side, but the month long course comes at a cost - approx £10,000 - at a specialist centre in Manchester.
Myself and James, along with a super-squad of family and fans (of Rafe's :) ), have commited to running / walking / cycling 10,000km to raise the £10,000 needed. That's one pound per kilometer - you donate, we'll move. And we'll share the group progress and leaderboard...it's bound to get competitive!
It takes a lot to put your hand up and ask for fundraising to help your child. We wish we didn't have to. But the best time to have this therapy is infancy, and with Rafe starting school next September we are running out of time. Receipts will of course be shared publicly of any costs, and if we happen to be in a position where we have money left over then this will be donated to The Children's Trust - the only specialist neuro-rehabilitation centre for children in the UK.
Follow #raceforrafe for insta updates, and thank you - truly.
Today, Rafe is a lively three and a half year old who quite literally brings joy to all who meet him with his naughty little sense of humour, wild red hair and glasses always perched on the end of his nose. His brain injury has meant that he has cerebral palsy - a form called hemiplegia which affects the right side of his body (both limbs, plus eye and mouth muscles too).
We are so fortunate that to date Rafe copes with his physical limitations like a true hero, and is able to walk (albeit not entirely independently). However, the damage to the part of the brain that controls his arm and hand is so severe he has virtually zero use. We have tried the NHS supplied physio + botox (which is administered under general aneasthetic) but we are still struggling to get any functional action.
This is where constraint induced movement therapy comes in. It is an intensive form of physiotherapy shown to have great results in children with hemiplegia. In America it is offered as an absolute must-have, but sadly the NHS does not cover it in the UK. Rafe is the perfect candidate for a month long intensive to really wakeup his right side, but the month long course comes at a cost - approx £10,000 - at a specialist centre in Manchester.
Myself and James, along with a super-squad of family and fans (of Rafe's :) ), have commited to running / walking / cycling 10,000km to raise the £10,000 needed. That's one pound per kilometer - you donate, we'll move. And we'll share the group progress and leaderboard...it's bound to get competitive!
It takes a lot to put your hand up and ask for fundraising to help your child. We wish we didn't have to. But the best time to have this therapy is infancy, and with Rafe starting school next September we are running out of time. Receipts will of course be shared publicly of any costs, and if we happen to be in a position where we have money left over then this will be donated to The Children's Trust - the only specialist neuro-rehabilitation centre for children in the UK.
Follow #raceforrafe for insta updates, and thank you - truly.
Organizer
Stephanie Cherry
Organizer