Luke who’s walking with Theo!
ASOUTHPORT schoolboy who learned to walk aged seven after undergoing a major operation was overjoyed after being able to walk out as an Everton FC mascot.
Jude McHugh, now eight, even got to accompany his favourite player, Theo Walcott, as the team walked on to the Goodison Park pitch for their match against West Bromwich Albion on January 20.
The Ainsdale St John’s pupil was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when he was 18 months old.
By the age of six, he had mastered walking with a frame, but he couldn’t walk on his own.
His parents, Lyndsey and Peter, spent a lot of time researching options to help him and paid for private physiotherapy, which meant that Jude had enough strength and movement to be considered for an operation on the nerves at the base of the spine.
As the operation was not available through the NHs, the family needed to raise £21,000 to pay for it. They raised £14,000 after a huge fundraising campaign, with the remainder donated by the Community Link Foundation, a charity which helps local causes.
Jude had the four-hour operation in January 2017, and he now able to move around much more freely.
The family attended the foundation’s annual dinner in December, where one of the founders told his parents about the opportunity to be a mascot.
Lyndsey said: “We kept it quiet from Jude at first, it was his birthday on January 8 and he was absolutely made up when he found out.
“It was a bit of a surprise on his birthday, They go at 10 in the morning, meet the players, do a training session with them and get some photos.
“Jude got to go with Theo Walcott who had just signed and he was made up, saying; ‘I’m the first player to walk out with him!’.”
Peter was with Jude through the day, while Lyndsey watched from the stands with Jude’s brother Jacob and it proved an emotional day for the family.
Lyndsey said: “The past year has flown by, but it’s not at the same time. It’s things like going to Everton and seeing him on the pitch that makes you stop and realise.
“If you were seeing him for the first time then, you wouldn’t think that he was any different.
“He can keep up with his friends now and at the class fair recently he walked in and sat with his friends on the bench, rather than at the side like in the past. That was emotional.”
Jude still has regular physiotherapy but refuses to feel frustrated or upset by his condition.
“He’s the most positive person you’ll ever meet,” said Lyndsey. “He doesn’t ever moan about anything, he just gets on with everything.
“He even said to me recently; ‘Mum, I’m not disabled anymore’.”
CLF board member Will Dexter said: “This mascot opportunity is born out of the collaboration between CLF and Everton in the Community.
“CLF are actively exploring ways to strengthen the partnership with Everton in the Community so that we can bring more of the great work that they do to our local area. Working together will help reach more people for both charities.”