Hello All

Please see below for information from Ruby's Mum relating to the first MD Community Annual Fundraising Appeal. Please give whatever you can, however small. Love MD x

Ruby was diagnosed with Cohens Syndrome at the age of 2 and a half. A rare genetic disorder affecting less than 600 people world-wide, Cohens affects Ruby's speech, mobility, muscle tone, sight and intellectual ability. Ruby only learnt to walk at 4 after intensive physiotherapy. She is yet to talk but with music therapy and speech and language input, her communication skills are slowly developing. As part of her condition, Ruby suffers with retinol dystrophy and is likely to be registered blind by her mid-teens. It is therefore, imperative that we support Ruby's development as much as possible before she loses her sight.

Ruby is a happy and sociable soul and most importantly, has the capacity to learn. However, due to the very limited offer made by our Local Authority (North Yorkshire), Ruby only receives one hour of speech therapy, one hour of physiotherapy and one hour of occupational therapy per term (3 hours of support every 12 weeks). For Ruby to reach her full potential, Ruby needs more therapeutic input than this, and we, as a family, have fund-raised constantly over the past 3 years to pay for her therapy privately. Ruby attends Therapy in Praxis in Knaresborough and North Yorkshire Music Therapy Centre for weekly music therapy, physiotherapy and speech and language therapy at a cost of £220. We would not have been able to afford to give Ruby this support without the help of our community. Unfortunately, as with many things, Covid-19 has put paid to many of our funding streams; charities are hard hit and regular events hosted in our local pubs are no longer able to go ahead. We are now struggling to pay for Ruby's therapy and would appreciate any help that anyone could offer our little girl in these bleak and difficult times