Grace is 22 and a fourth-year medical student.  A few weeks ago she suffered a serious injury to her spine and is now unable to walk. She is an exceptional young woman and is meeting the extreme challenges of her situation with resilience. She is working hard at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore, in order to learn the skills needed for an independent life. She will resume her medical studies in August and plans to be a paediatrician.

She needs a paraplegic fitness bike to keep the muscles she can't use active and maintain overall health. This will also enable her to be ready to take part in any future trials of new medical research on resolving paralysis. The FES bike is currently the most promising avenue of restorative therapy available.The bike works via computer controlled functional electrical stimulation of the legs and it costs £15,000. With the kindness of family and friends we hope to also provide equipment that will help her mobility - a rechargeable power assist will cost £5,000 and will ensure Grace can move about London much more easily while sparing her shoulders, and a £5,000 front wheel powered single drive would enable her to move over a range of surfaces outdoors which would be otherwise inaccessible.

We have known Grace since she was born and are close friends of her family. Please help us to raise enough money to support her to make the most of her new life. All donations will go directly to Grace and be used for equipment for her health and mobility.

Many thanks, Joanna Rollo and Clare Fermont