W ife of racing champ stunned as fans donate to help her buy prosthetic leg
A FERMANAGH woman facing an £18,000 bill to buy a prosthetic leg says she has been moved to tears by the generosity of the road racing community.
Jenny Gartland, from Ederney, revealed she will be going for a consultation this week which could see her move closer to getting her artificial leg.
So far almost £7,000 has been raised.
Jenny said: “I’m actually shocked at the level of support,” revealing it had left her tearful.
The wife of Irish road racing champion Paul Gartland, Jenny has been suffering from a rare infection since she was seven years old.
She was advised to have the emergency operation to remove her leg in a private clinic as her life was seriously at risk and the public waiting list was too long.
She had the surgery in February but afterwards found that the Republic’s Health Service Executive (HSE) would no longer be able to provide her with the prosthetic limb she needed.
Last month Road Racing Ireland magazine launched a fundraising campaign to assist her — and already over £6,800 has been donated to help her get the prosthetic limb she desperately needs.
The fund is being boosted by Athlone-based short circuit rider Cody Nally, who has been auctioning his rider’s helmet to raise an extra £1,000.
Jenny added: “I keep waiting for something to go wrong, but I watched the fund rising over the past week and it’s incredible. I’d like to thank everyone for their support, it means so much to me and Paul.
“This time of year is very difficult for me with the cold weather. There are a lot of aches and pains so this can’t come quickly enough.
“Since I was discharged from having the leg amputated I’ve had no physio, no counselling and I haven’t spoken to anyone about what I’ve been going through. It’s been tough.
“That’s why it’s been so great to see the support from friends at Irish Road Racing magazine and Paul’s racing friends like
Cody. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to thank them all enough.”
Originally from the Republic, Jenny had been undergoing treatment on her leg for 33 years there.
The problems started when she was seven and she went into hospital for a routine procedure.
“I was a normal, healthy child up until then,” she explained.
“It should have been in and out of hospital in a couple of
❝ I was hit with so many infections that I was told the only option was to lose the leg or risk death
days, but instead I ended up in intensive care for 30 days as I contracted septicaemia.
“There were other complications and through time I’ve had to have knee and hip replacements, my ankle had to be fused and basically my leg was medically dead.
“There were further serious problems with gangrene. My foot was black, toes were going to start falling off.
“I was being hit with so many various infections that I was finally told the option was to remove the leg or risk death. There was no choice. Infections would have spread to the rest of my body.
“What I didn’t know was that going privately meant the southern Ireland health board would no longer be in a position to provide me with a prosthetic limb.”
Appeals to the Republic’s Minister for Health, Simon Harris, through local TDs and medical consultants failed.
But Road Racing Ireland magazine stepped in with a gofundme campaign to come to her aid.
To find out how to support Jenny, visit the gofundme website and search for Jenny Gartland