Ava’s first day back at nursery
Bubbly Ava Stark, 4, returns after life-saving stem cell transplant
LITTLE hero Ava Stark has gone back to nursery for the first time since a stem cell transplant saved her life.
The four-year-old beamed with joy yesterday morning as she ran around the garden at Noah’s Ark Nursery in her home town.
Mum Marie, 34, said: “It’s absolutely amazing. We didn’t think this day would ever happen. She was too excited to sleep last night.”
Ava faced death last year because of a rare bone marrow disorder and urgently needed a transplant to save her.
Her donor had to be a precise match and her family went through hell as two volunteers had to pull out at the last minute.
But Ava got her transplant in December after the Daily Record led an appeal for donors. Thousands of our readers rushed to volunteer and more than 83,000 people across the UK signed up.
She was named one of our Little Heroes at the Our Heroes awards in May and is set to become the face of a new campaign to recruit more donors.
Ava, of Lochgelly, Fife, went home early from nursery yesterday because her immune system is still weak and one of the other kids was ill. But Marie said: “It’s a great start. We’re aiming for more next week.
“We can’t thank everyone enough. If it wasn’t for all those amazing people who registered to become donors we might never have got here.”