Amazing support sees fund soar past £20,000 in a day
The family of a football daft boy struck down by a‘one in a million’illness have smashed their fundraising target aimed at providing him with a better quality of life.
Nine-year-old Jack McGarry was taken to hospital last March suffering from shooting pains down his limbs on either side of his body.
After a few days at University Hospital Wishaw he was transferred to the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow, where an MRI scan found that Jack, who lives in Motherwell had a Spinal Arteriovenous Malformation, an extremely rare condition where enlarged blood vessels swell and damage the spinal cord, interrupting the signals between his brain and the rest of his body.
An angiogram was scheduled to try to remove the cluster, but unfortunately, Jack suffered a bleed into his spinal cord before the procedure could be carried out, which initially left him with paralysis in all four limbs.
The angiogram was carried out, but unfortunately Jack then had to endure an eight-and-a-half hour operation the following week.
Jack’s dad Graeme McGarry said: “A month into his rehab doctors weren’t sure if he would walk again but now there is much more hope.
“It’s such a rare thing. The surgeon told us it was a one in a million chance this could happen which wasn’t enough comfort to us. She said she hadn’t seen this condition in a child in her 30 years of medicine.
“Having to go through this certainly gives you a different perspective on life. He is still fighting.”
Through the incredible skill of the surgeons and the rehab treatment Jack received in the six months that followed in hospital, as well as the ongoing rehab he is now receiving at home, he has since regained partial function in his arms and is showing promising signs in his legs and feet.
He is able to use an electric wheelchair, but still faces huge challenges in his day-to-day life.
Knowetop Primary pupil Jack is determined to make the best recovery possible, and to help him do so, Graeme, Jack’s mum Cassie and younger brother James are raising money to send him to the Neurokinex clinic in Gatwick, who offer activitybased rehabilitation (ABR) to people with all levels of spinal cord injury and other neurological conditions.
There, he will be able to receive treatments such as the Xcite Wide Pulse Stimulation system, which allows a trainer to tailor an individualised therapy programme to complete complex upper limb, lower limb and general functional tasks, and take part in Locomotor Training on a treadmill.
Just 24 hours after putting up the JustGiving page, Jack has already smashed the £20,000 target.
Graeme said: “It just blew me away. It has completely overwhelmed me, not only with the money raised but also the number of messages of support.
“You’re always wary of asking for help from people during this time and we thought this fundraising could take weeks and months.
“Jack’s uncle has been wanting to run a half marathon and we were looking to do fundraising like that but this will be such a boost for Jack.
“It’s been a really difficult time for myself and Cassie but he just gets on with it and has been carrying on with his pals,
“The teachers and staff at Knowetop have been fabulous for us. They actually moved his class downstairs in August to accommodate Jack and another girl in his class who uses a wheelchair.
“He is still fighting. All we can do is give him the best possible chance of recovery.”
Before his illness, Motherwell FC fanatic Jack also played football with the Motherwell Trust team and was a regular at Fir Park.
“He is football daft and loves playing with his friends,” said Graeme.
“Like me he is a big Motherwell fan and my dad Larry takes him to all the games.
“The club have been fantastic throughout all this and Jack’s had messages encouraging him from the likes of chief executive Alan Burrows and Keith Lasley.
“We can’t thank them enough.” If you would like to donate to help Jack’s recovery visit https://www. justgiving.com/crowdfunding/ jackmcgarry