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HAPPY: Harvey with his parents

Mum expresses joy as money pours in to help three-year-old walk

THE MOTHER of a three year-old who desperately needs artificial legs has expressed her joy at the overwhelming generosity of

Voice readers, who have helped raise over £30,000 for her son.

As featured on the front page of the Voice seven weeks ago, Carol Parry was desperate to raise the funds to buy new artificial legs for her son Harvey after he was struck down by meningitis meningococcal septicaemia, a potentially deadly brain bug that severely attacked his body.

The Parry family needed the money to fly to New York, where Harvey could be fitted with state-of-the-art prosthetic

limbs, after the ones provided for him by the NHS were deemed unsuitable. Their local NHS Trust had refused to pay for the special American-made limbs.

PHENOMENAL

“I feel relieved because it’s been very stressful, but we had such a phenomenal result since we were featured in the

Voice newspaper. People have been really supportive,” Carol said. The happy mum revealed that donations poured in at a

rapid rate from kind-hearted Voice readers, and she has booked a flight so Harvey can receive treatment from world renowned prosthetic company A Step Ahead on May 8. “Every night I would ring the bank to see how much was paid in and it would be

literally thousands coming in,” she said.

Overcome by emotion, Carol thanked readers for digging deep to help Harvey walk comfortably for another year.

“I would like to give every Voice reader a big kiss and cuddle because they have really helped me and my family, and I know that my son will be okay for the next 10 months. I have been so worried, I’m really grateful to all of them,” she said tearfully.

However, as Harvey continues to grow the family faces a battle to raise the money each time he outgrows his prosthetic legs and needs new ones. Carol was keen to stress that there is still work to be done. “These legs will last him another 10 months, but during that period we have to think of ways to raise the money for his next set, and I just hope people keep supporting us the way that they have,” she said.

To make a difference to Harvey’s life, visit: www.harveyparryappealfund.com Donations can

be made via paypal or to Barclays Bank: account number 10628034; sort code 20-29-90.

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Published: 13 April 2009
Issue: 1367

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