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View Full Version : Charitable Plea - Can you help a 13 year old girl keep walking?


Fordward
31-01-15, 03:43 PM
Charitable Plea -

http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd82/colinbal4/Project%20Alycat/14284_330262190517946_8050609097338061625_n_zpsomr jgt73.jpg

Alyssa is my niece, she is 13 years old, her nickname is Alycat, and she has a severe spinal deformation, which left untreated would result in her loosing her mobility. The condition is called Scoliosis and Alyssa has a 59 degree spinal curve which is only worsening as she grows, her shoulders, shoulder blades and hips are already being pushed significantly out of position, and she is wearing a rigid fibre-glass body brace 22 hours per day to hold her torso in the right position, which is painful.

In America scoliosis treatment is very advanced, and they offer a pioneering operation named Vertebratal Body Tethering (VBT) which essentially means screwing a cleat into each vertebrate, straightening the spine, and tightening a metal cable along the cleats to hold it straight, just like putting a brace on a teenagers teeth! This operation isn't available in the UK, on the NHS, or through any medical insurance available in the UK.

The cost of the operation is up to £140,000. My Sister and Brother in Law have already re-mortgaged their house in order to raise funds, but they just don't have anything like that kind of equity. So the point of this post is to fundraise, and to ask the members of this forum for any help they can give, I know how great bikers are at pulling together when someone is in need.

Thank you everyone for taking the time to read this and for any support you can give.

1. Simply make a personal donation using the Golden Giving, all donations will be processed through umbrella charity Tree of Hope, a children’s charity who exist to help in personal fundraising cases such as these, where setting up a separate charity wouldn't be feasible.

http://www.goldengiving.com/wall/project-alycat

2. Please share this link on your facebook pages and help raise awareness.

https://www.facebook.com/projectalycat

3. Are you planning a marathon, a triathlon, a tough mudder, a cycle race, and need a charity to support?

4. Are you a member of a club or organisation that could help?

5. I don't have a number five! Do you? We need fundraising ideas, and people to get involved, can you think of anything that would raise money for Alyssa's cause?

Thank you everyone for your support!

Dave20046
31-01-15, 03:55 PM
Wanting to donate, can you enable paypal on that site?
Or just drop me an email address I can paypal to....

Fordward
31-01-15, 05:13 PM
Wanting to donate, can you enable paypal on that site?
Or just drop me an email address I can paypal to....

Hi Mate, thanks very much.

If you click the "Compare and Choose" button on the Golden Giving site, then you get a paypal option. They do charge bank charges for Paypal donations, but that's all Golden Giving charge for, it's still less than some other similar sites who give all the donation amount, but take a chunky commission out of the gift aid.

Dave20046
31-01-15, 05:42 PM
First bloody paragraph, sorry I was rushing to nip out the house. It's nothing (on its own), but hopefully a starting block

Fordward
31-01-15, 05:56 PM
Thank you! Any amount is great!

Fordward
31-01-15, 06:11 PM
It's just occurred to me that a number of the Madlanders know Alyssa's Dad, Steve, Yellow VFR800, been on a number of SV650 rideouts, mostly those that started at the Long Itch Diner in Long Itchington.

munkygunn182
31-01-15, 06:30 PM
Done my man.

maviczap
31-01-15, 08:21 PM
Donated

Mr Speirs
31-01-15, 08:52 PM
Donated Bro!

Fordward
31-01-15, 09:24 PM
You guys are amazing. Speechless. Thanks very much!

fizzwheel
01-02-15, 04:14 PM
Done

Fordward
01-02-15, 05:40 PM
Thank you Fizz

Fordward
03-02-15, 08:09 PM
Thought you folks might like to see this video from yesterdays news, which shows the operation you have been helping Alyssa to have. Alyssa's back looks slightly different in that her shoulders, shoulder blades, ribs, etc are a couple of inches higher on one side than the other, and one shoulder blade protrudes quite badly, but the principal of what this girl has had is exactly the same. The fact she's sitting in the studio less than a month after major spinal surgery shows how advanced this new operation is.


http://www.londonlive.co.uk/news/2015-02-02/scoilosis-sufferer-calls-for-more-awareness-of-spine-curving-disease


When she talks about a "brace" this is what she means, and Alyssa currently wears hers 22 hours per day


http://www.sandiegoscoliosiscenter.com/clients/8607/images/hard_brace.jpg


Just thought you might like to see more about where your donations are going.
Thank you all so much again.

L3nny
04-02-15, 05:00 PM
Happy to help, give my regards to Steve

Fordward
06-02-15, 05:41 PM
Thanks Lenny, just seen your donation on Golden Giving. I'll remind Steve that he knows you as he may not make the connection between Lenny and your full name as it is on Golden Giving.