£5,000 bid to help Natalia take plunge into pool fun
AFUNDRAISING campaign has been launched to help a young girl who has had her foot amputated enjoy swimming with her school pals.
Natalia Walton, six, from Bollington, was born with a condition called proximal femoral focal deficiency, meaning one leg grows more than the other.
As a result the youngster underwent several corrective operations and had to have a below the knee amputation on her left leg aged just two.
Since then Natalia has had a prosthetic leg but the one she uses day to day is not waterproof so must be taken off before swimming, leaving her feeling self-conscious and exposed.
A swim prosthetic would cost £5,000 and is not available through the NHS like her one for everyday use is.
Mum Katie, 32, said: “She is a happy girl and all her prosthetic legs have been bright pink or purple so she is not ashamed.
”But as she is getting older she is becoming more self-conscious and you feel awful as you can’t change that. She wants to be independent with her friends and not have to think about it. “If she doesn’t have a prosthetic how does she get to the pool? Does she take it off and leave it by the side or does she crawl or be carried there?”
A gofundme web page called Let Natalia Swim has been set up and within three days it had raised more than £1,200.
Natalia, who has two older brothers and an older sister, attends Bollington St John’s Primary and pupils start swimming classes again after the Easter holidays.
Her condition means one of her femur bones does not grow as it should, leaving her right leg longer than her left with the difference increasing over time.
The family, which includes dad Christopher, 38, live on Highfield Road and have thanked the community and school for their support.
Katie said: “It is just amazing, it is nice that people care so much about Natalia and that she gets what she needs.
”She loves swimming, on holiday you can’t get her out of the pool. There has been a lot of support and it makes us feel as though we are not on our own.”
To make a donation visit https://gofund.me/ fae48eb5.