Making some noise to show

OVER 400 BIKERS FORM PROCESSION TO CHEER UP POORLY TEEN

BIKERS turned out in their hundreds at the weekend to show support for a 15-year-old boy from Mountsorrel with an untreatable brain tumour.

Matty Hatton was diagnosed with the condition in 2016, which he recovered from after 18 months of treatment.

However, earlier this year, Matty was told that the tumour had returned and it was untreatable.

Since lockdown, Matty has been shielding and during that time he has started a project, Letters from Lockdown, where he has received supportive messages from members of the public.

Inspired by the project, and to try to put a smile on his face, Francesca Pearson, from Loughborough, organised a drive-by with her biker friends.

The 30-year-old said: “A friend of mine made me aware of the Letters from Lockdown page on Facebook and I thought it was amazing.

“He is only 15 and he only lives down the road from me, and I decided I wanted to do something different, so thought I could do a drive-by with some of my biker friends.”

What was originally supposed to be a drive-by with a few of her friends soon turned into a much larger-scale event when her instructor got in touch with other bikers he knew.

In the end, more than 400 bikers turned out to drive past Matty’s house.

Francesca said: “It snowballed into something big very quickly.

“I had to ring a lot of people in a couple of days to get everything organised.

“We just wanted to put a smile on his face and, when I spoke to him, he was completely blown away.

“When I first pulled up and told him who I was, he said he couldn’t believe this many bikers had come out for him.

“We just wanted to make some noise for him.”

Francesca said that being a survivor of cervical cancer herself helped her understand what Matty was going through.

She said: “I had treatment for a year and went into remission and of course Matty’s is much worse, but I want to show him that he’s not on his own.

“Other people are there for him and support him.”

Matty’s mum Alison said her son was overwhelmed by the support he had received from the community.

The 48-year-old said: “Matty absolutely loved the ride-by.

“He was so overwhelmed when they asked if he wanted a drive-by, and was expecting only about 20 bikes, but they just kept coming. Just when we thought there weren’t anymore, the stream continued.

“There was so much noise, I think we must have upset the whole of Mountsorrel.

“It was emotional to watch so many people, and see how much they care.

“It’s such a lovely memory for us, and it was really special.”