Gosport mum raising awareness on International Wheelchair Day
Suzanne French is running her first London Marathon in aid of Whizz Kidz the wheelchair charity for children.
Suzanne aims to raise £2,000 for Whizz Kidz a national wheelchair charity, who has supplied a wheelchair to her daughter Annabel.
The charity supplies wheelchairs to children who might otherwise not be able to access the NHS wheelchair service due to the current demand or they supply wheelchairs that the service can not provide, such as light-weight or motorised.
The wheelchair is fully fitted to the child by expert occupational therapists and engineers. The child can even pick the colour - of course Annabel went for pink with blue accents.
The Gosport mum explains that Whizz Kidz has changed their lives, her daughter Annabel has hypermobilty and hypertonia and therefore finds long days difficult.
She said: “We would usually stay in or cut our trip out of the house short, however the wheelchair means that we are able to access days out like any other family. We can spend more quality time out of the house.
“As Annabel is a part-time wheelchair user she often gets strange looks when she gets up out of her chair. People don't realise that people use wheelchairs for all different reasons and that people should not judge.
“Sometimes, Annabel's pain and energy fluctuates and therefore she is encouraged to walk and exercise when able. This allows her to build strength in her joints and muscles.
“Often, after a long day at school or a trip out at the weekend, we will find her pain to be higher, which wakes her up at night and energy levels to be lower. Having her wheelchair means have we don't have to plan around that and that her diability not a barrier for us.
“For the first time, Whizz Kidz has unfortunately had to close their applications due to lack of funding and the amount of children on the waitlist. The current funds they have will just about support the families on the waitlist, which has increased to 9 months wait.
“That's why it is paramount to raise as much money as possible to ensure that other children like Annabel can have access to this lifeline.
“You can support Suzanne on her marathon journey at www.justgiving.com/page/suzanne-french-whizzkidz”