"The heart sees what the eyes cannot"

This is one of many life lessons that my son Alejandro has taught me and will continue to teach me in the years to come. Most of you know that the amazing Alejandro, our surviving twin, is legally blind/severely sight impaired. He wasn't born blind but lost the majority of his sight as an infant as a result of him developing severe Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) due to his extremely premature birth at 24 weeks weighing 645 grams. Alejandro underwent multiple surgeries and complications and has experienced more challenges in his short life than most. Although his loss of sight has significantly impacted his life in many ways and on multiple levels, we feel that it is only a small part of who he is and it doesn't define him but rather makes him pretty special. Alejandro is now 15 years old, a proficient Braillist and a white cane user. He is defining and creating a unique path for his future, which currently involves becoming a polyglot (4 languages and counting). We feel priveleged and blessed as his parents to watch his creation happen.  

We also feel honoured that his current secondary school, New College Worcester (NCW) is playing an integral part of this path he is creating. NCW is a national specialist residential school, based in Worcester, England, which educates young people aged 11-19 who are blind and vision impaired. Alejandro is a weekly boarder there and has thrived. NCW empowers young people to succeed with their academic, independence and social skills. It follows the UK's national curriculum, so Alejandro and his peers are taught the same academic subjects as any other young person, from Maths to History, Spanish to Physics, Music to English Literature, IT to Geography, to name a few. NCW's uniqueness though is that every single subject is taught using the appropriate  accessible format the young person requires, such as Braille, large print, screen reader, tactile graphs, etc. In addition, NCW also teaches Independent Living Skills (ILS), including safe cooking, laundry, finance and money management, mobility, grocery shopping, transportation, etc.  - things that we as sighted people take for granted. NCW also has a great activities programme which has the young person doing horse-riding, paddle boarding, rock climbing, swimming, playing cricket, hugby (an adapted form of rugby) and much more. Check out NCW's website to find out more about what this amazing school is doing, have to offer and how it is making a real, positive, and impactful difference in the educational and overall lives of the young people it serves: Home - New College Worcester (ncw.co.uk)

This is why I've decided to trek 25km (15.5 miles) up and down the rolling and rugged hills of England's beautiful Peak District on July 9th to raise  money for New College Worcester and to support them in the incredible work they do in providing high quality, innovative, accessible and appropriate education to young people who are blind or vision impaired, like Alejandro. Everyone there cares about each young person and is dedicated to giving them not only a wide range of educational opportunities but also equipping them with the independent living skills, confidence and self-esteem they will need, so they are equipped for success in life.  

Please join me in reaching my goal of £1,000.00 and supporting this excellent school/charity. In doing so, you are assisting me in highlighting the importance of providing high quality and appropriate education for all young people, including those who are blind or vision impaired.

Thank you so much!

Hugs,

Gigixx