Football day nets nearly £6,000 to help wee Jamie
Fundraiser to help pay for treatment for brave three-year-old
A FOOTBALL family fun day netted nearly £6,000 towards treatment for a Dunfermline boy.
The JT Cup event at the Pitreavie Sports Centre was held on Sunday as part of ongoing fundraising to help pay for treatment for threeyear-old Jamie Tierney, who was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) earlier this year.
As well as a five-a-side tournament featuring 23 teams, a range of fun games, activities, inflatables and stalls were on offer as well as the chance to get a photo with characters including Mickey and Minnie Mouse and Elsa. The Daffodil Dance Academy also came along to perform.
Jamie’s mum, Bobbie, told the Press: “It was amazing, it was so, so good. The Pitreavie Sports Centre donated the use of facilities, which was amazing. We used the astro pitches and 23 teams were in for the football side of it and we had four leagues and the top two in each went to a knockout round. It was really competitive and so many spectators came along to watch.
“We just got such an amazing response. We smashed our target of £3,000. The day raised around £5,880. All the teams donated and the winners, the Rosyth Bluebells, gave their cash prize back so that was really kind.
“The day was actually so much fun and we got to speak to so many people.”
After receiving the devastating news about their boy, Bobbie and Jamie began a fundraising campaign to help find the £60,000 a year needed for their son to receive vital treatment in South America.
There is currently no cure for the muscle-wasting illness, which is found mainly in boys and affects all muscles, including the lungs, heart and the brain, however, it is hoped the planned infusion treatment will help slow the disease down.
The family will head out for the first treatment session next month.
“Right now, we have already paid for the first treatment and we are just short of the next one in February and then the next one after that will be July,” explained Bobbie. “The response we have had has been amazing – it is like we almost have got a small army we have got that much support.
“People are so kind. On Facebook, we get so many random messages from people I have not met saying they are following our story and are wanting to help.
“Parents from all over the world have also reached out to us because their kids have got Duchenne and are asking about us and about the treatment. We want to do this because Jamie is our son and we want to help him but we want to do this for every boy who has this condition. There are people less fortunate who don’t have the resources so as much as we are raising funds to save Jamie, we are wanting to raise awareness as well.”
A fundraising ball will take place in the Glen Pavilion in November. For details on that and how to donate, visit the Wee Jamie’s Journey Facebook page.