On Saturday 7th September 2019 I will be participating in my 5th Tough Mudder event. Myself and my team are to expect mud, hills, water, fire, more mud and ice as we'll be put through our paces on a gruelling course.  

The course requires months' worth of preparations and hard work to ensure that we are strong and fit enough to make it through to the end with all the team in tact!

For Tough Mudder this year I'll be raising money for the Micro and Anophthalmic Children’s Society – the UK’s national charity for children born without eyes or with underdeveloped eyes. They support families of children born with Microphthalmia (small eyes), Anophthalmia (no eyes) and/or Coloboma (cleft of the eye). Their services are accessed by around 500 families around the UK and some who are further afield.

For me this charity rings close to home as my daughter Tilly was born with Trachea-Oesophageal Fistula (TOF) a rare congenital condition that affects one in every 3,500 babies and is when a baby is born with a conjoined windpipe and oesophagus. Many children born with this condition also have other deformities such as limbs and organs that are not fully formed. Unfortunately for Tilly she was born with a left Microphthalmia (micro eye) with no sight.  

Tilly's (TOF) condition dictated that she had to be transferred immediately from Warrington Hospital to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital and within 24 hours she had undergone major surgery to separate her oesophagus from her windpipe, then had both ends of her oesophagus connected. Post operation, Tilly was admitted to Intensive Care where she stayed for the next 4 days before being transferred to the Neo Natal unit for a further 2 weeks.

Having a child born with any condition can be devastating, especially if like me and many other parents you have no knowledge pre-birth that your baby will be affected.

MACS provides emotional and practical support to parents or carers of children born with MACS condition of any level of severity. They also welcome adults born with a MACS condition, who may have found our charity for the first time.

One of the most important things that MACS does is to give members access to a network of other families who have a first hand experience of what they are going through. Through our regional support groups, families can offer each other peer support and participate in group activities which bring a sense of normality into their lives. 

Thanks for taking the time to visit Warrior HQ’s JustGiving page.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.