Mia was born on 31st July 2014 and is now 10 years old. Mia was born through a completely normal pregnancy, and at about 10 months old, she was diagnosed with a severe visual impairment (blindness). At first, this was thought to be her only condition, and although she would be behind in her development, it was expected that she would eventually catch up to children of her age, just at her own pace. Unfortunately, this is not the case. After a number of MRI scans at Great Ormond Street, it was discovered that Mia's brain was not developing as it should. Today, Mia cannot hold her body weight sitting up unsupported, crawl, or walk. A few years ago, Mia had to undergo a 9-hour operation at the Evelina Hospital in London to help strengthen both her hip joints, as the muscles were not developing properly. This, combined with her inability to talk and her increasing size, is starting to become a real challenge for our family.

This is where we are requesting your help and support. We will continue to try to have private physiotherapy and hydrotherapy for Mia. I had taken out private medical care to fund Mia's physiotherapy and hydrotherapy, but as her condition is now being linked to genetics, they will not cover anything for her. This leaves us to pay for Mia's private physiotherapy and hydrotherapy out of our own pockets, which is neither cheap nor local. Therefore, we need help raising money to provide her with this much-needed therapy.

Currently, we are aiming to raise money for equipment. We recently purchased an all-terrain wheelchair with funds raised through this charity. This wheelchair enables Mia to enjoy and access the beach, as well as accompany us on bike rides. (The cost of this wheelchair is the same as a brand-new small hatchback car.) The main goal of our charity fundraising is to purchase equipment that will allow Mia to enjoy life and be a part of our activities, especially now that she is getting so much bigger. This includes bigger wheelchairs, sensory equipment for home, and other items that will help her experience as many things and places as possible. As Mia grows, she is quickly outgrowing equipment, which all eventually has to be replaced.

We would welcome any donations, fundraising, or events that people want to run to help us support Mia on her journey. We will continue to focus on the possibility of Mia walking one day—who knows—but the main goal now is to ensure she has the things she needs to enjoy life and be a part of an experienced life, as much as possible, given her needs.

This money could change Mia's life forever. Your support would help give Mia what she wants and needs.

Thank you for reading this story. We truly appreciate any donations you make, as they will mean the world to Mia in the long run and help our family with equipment and therapy for a long time to come.

7.5% of all donations to Tree of Hope in relation to this appeal will be allocated to the general charitable purposes of Tree of Hope to cover our core operating costs.

If we raise insufficient funds, or surplus funds, they will be used, if appropriate, to fund support for our child’s needs in accordance with Tree of Hope’s charitable objectives. If, in those circumstances, we are unable to use all or part of the funds for the benefit of our child, any funds that cannot be used will be transferred to be used for the general charitable purposes of Tree of Hope.