Thank you to everyone who came to see us on our stand at the North East Lincolnshire Parent Participation Forum's SEND event today.  If you didn't make it to the event or missed us, then please get in touch with us for more information on info@lincolnshirecerebralpalsy.org.uk

On Friday 21st September the Lincolnshire Cerebral Palsy Society re-launched in style with help from the fantastic Rumble Band, The Beachcomber and Bridge McFarland Solicitors.
 
The charity, who until recently were know as ‘The North East Lincolnshire Cerebral Palsy Society’, offers funding and support for people in Lincolnshire who are affected by Cerebral Palsy. By extending their offer to the whole of Lincolnshire they have been able to provide support to Leonie Hadley-Wilkinson – a local girl who needs help with fundraising to have life changing surgery.
 
The ‘Leonie Rumble Ball’ was hosted by Bridge McFarland Solicitors with BBC Look North’s Phillip Norton presenting the evening. The event featured a silent auction, live auction, balloon raffle, standard raffle and the musical stylings of the Rumble Band.
  
On the night Vicky, mother to Leonie, got up and said a few words about how much the surgery would mean for her daughter: “If it goes well then she could walk. It has been amazing what with all the support we have had in the last five months. I can’t believe that we are nearly there”
 
“SDR surgery will relieve a lot of the tension Leonie has in her limbs. As she grows her limbs are being pulled tighter and it is causing her a lot of pain. I just want to stop her pain, and that is what the surgery will hopefully do”.
 
The family have a fundraising target of £35,000, but that will only cover the operation and a single year of physiotherapy. Leonie will still need more financial help in the future to fund the intensive physiotherapy and aftercare necessary to make the most of her opportunity.
 


Also present at The Rumble Ball were the parents of the Lincolnshire Cerebral Palsy Societies’ Patron, Ash Turner. Ash, who was engaged in a golf tournament and unable to attend on the night, is a professional golfer who fares from Lincolnshire and has a mild form of Cerebral Palsy. Stephen Turner who spoke on his son’s behalf told of how golf had been used to help Ash manage his condition as a youngster, improving his balance and control from a young age.
 
“We first bought him a little set of plastic golf clubs and he took to it straight away. His motto is ‘always believe in yourself and follow your dreams’.
 
Chris Gresswell-Green is a committee member of the Lincolnshire Cerebral Palsy Society as well as a Senior Solicitor at Bridge McFarland Solicitors. “I’m so pleased with how the event went on the night. To have raised over £3,500 for Leonie is fantastic and I just hope that her surgery goes well. Lincolnshire Cerebral Palsy Society has gone from strength to strength this year and I look forward to helping them celebrate their 65th anniversary in January. A big thank you to Phillip Norton who did a cracking job on the night, he really brought the whole night together”.

Sue Lawson has been involved with the charity for many years, and is currently a Trustee: “We are over the moon that the ball was such a success and that Ash has been kind enough to agree to become the patron of the charity. Ash has a story that can be such an inspiration for our members. I think it really does go to show just how powerful physical therapy can be.
 
“The NHS is not able to fund all the physiotherapy, surgery and equipment needed to give people with Cerebral Palsy their best chance in life. We hope that the work we do will help people to bridge that gap and allow everyone to follow their dreams”. 
 
“The Ball was a smashing success and we are so very grateful to everyone who donated prizes to the raffle and the auction – we couldn’t have done it without you!”  

Local girl in need of specialist surgery to help her move without pain and walk with aids, local businesses charities and entertainers unite to help and ask for support from the people of Cleethorpes and Grimsby.
 
The Rumble Band is coming together with the Lincolnshire Cerebral Palsy Society to raise money for Leonie, a local girl who needs money for surgery. Bridge McFarland Solicitors are hosting the ‘Rumble Ball’, to take place at the Beachcomber in Cleethorpes, on the 21st.September 2018.  This event will include a luxury two course meal, along with a great night of music and entertainment and all proceeds raised will be donated to Leonie’s fund.
 
Leonie has Spastic Quadriplegia, a severe form of Cerebral Palsy that affects all four of her limbs, and there is a surgery currently being reviewed and tested by the NHS that has been shown to greatly improve the condition (SDR Surgery) – while everyone is hopeful that this procedure will soon be available through NHS funding it works best when patients are younger, so for Leonie’s sake it would be better to undertake this surgery as soon as the funds can be raised.
 
Leonie’s family need to raise £35,000 to pay for the surgery and associated aftercare, they are hopeful that if they can sell all the tickets to this ball that will be close to their fundraising total. As well as the charity ball, the family are hosting a Rock and Motown night at Louth Town Hall in September, more details of that can be found on the ‘@leoniesjourneywithcp’ Facebook Page – to book you can email littlevickybrit@live.co.uk.
 
Vicky, Leonie’s mother, has been doing everything she can to raise funds for her little girl “it is heart-breaking to see your child in pain, and every day as she grows it is getting worse. I’m afraid to touch her; you never know what might hurt. She has always been very brave, I just want to do anything I can to give her the best in life, like any parent would. I don’t like having to ask for help, but there just isn’t a pot of money set aside for children like Leonie and it would take me a lifetime to save up the amount we need”.
 
The Lincolnshire Cerebral Palsy Society offer support to people with Cerebral Palsy, they have been doing what they can to support Leonie and her mother.
 
Chris Green is Senior Solicitor at Bridge McFarland as well as being a Committee member for the Lincolnshire Cerebral Palsy Society, he hopes the event will help the charity to grow; “the Lincolnshire Cerebral Palsy Society and the charity are re-launching themselves at the Rumble Ball with a new name, brand, and website. It is an exciting time – previously the charity was known as the ‘North East Lincolnshire CP Society’ but it has become clear that there is a need for their help across the whole of Lincolnshire – we hope this launch event will raise their profile, inspire donations from the community, and encourage people with Cerebral Palsy to come to us for support and guidance”.
 
There are 500 tickets to sell, and we hope that everyone reading this will do their best to help us get them sold – all the proceeds will be going towards Leonie’s surgery. You can purchase tickets to the Rumble Ball today either by calling the Beachcomber box office directly on 01472 812 666, or buying online.