Brave Mia gets skates on to finish her daring ice mission CEREBRAL PALSY GIRL’S COURAGE
A COURAGEOUS girl with cerebral palsy is set to complete a gruelling challenge to ice skate unaided next weekend.
Mia Thorne, 10, is confined to a wheelchair due to tiredness caused by her condition.
But despite her hardship, the inspirational schoolgirl will feature at an all-star ice hockey match and raise thousands of pounds for Dreams Come True.
In 2012 the charity, which gives opportunities to children with life-limiting conditions, made Mia’s dream come true by giving her and her family a holiday in Orlando, Florida.
And she pledged to help other youngsters’ dreams come true by taking on the ice skating challenge and raising £5,000.
She is preparing to skate out at Ice Arena Wales in Cardiff on Saturday and shoot a puck into the goal watched by a crowd of thousands and the Dreams Come True ice hockey team.
Mia, from Pontypridd, in Wales, was born with congenital hemiplegia, a form of cerebral palsy that affects her mobility.
She struggles with balancing on her own – which has made her challenge all the more difficult.
Mia’s doctors and mum Karene had concerns over the ice skating attempt, but Mia persuaded them it was what she wanted to do.
Her physiotherapy was increased to help her body cope with the demands.
Mia admitted: “I have found it really hard and it has made me want to give up, but I can’t as I want and need to help children like me.”
Proud Karene said: “Every time we go skating, she knows the consequences. She