Two young brothers who have courageously faced tough battles with their health will finally have the bedrooms they deserve following an emotional appeal in the Chester Chronicle.
The Kelso family from Northwich has experienced more than their fair share of heartbreak, with eleven-year-old Cieran losing his legs to meningitis when he was just 13-months-old and youngest child Gabriel diagnosed with cystic fibrosis two weeks after he was born.
The boys share a bedroom on the first floor of their home but desperately need rooms of their own, so mum Gemma and dad Gary launched an online appeal to find a shortfall of around £9,372 after being awarded a £30,000 Disabled Facilities Grant from the Government to carry out the vital home modifications.
Stephen Morgan from The Morgan Foundation and an anonymous donor were so touched by the family’s story that they wasted no time in coming forward to offer the extra £8,772 required after the public’s generous donations.
Stephen – founder and chairman of Redrow and The Bridgemere Group of Companies – said: “I was deeply moved by the Kelso family’s story: both by the bravery of Cieran and Gabriel and by the strength and determination of the entire family.
“In the past, the Kelso family have raised money for both The Meningitis Trust and The Cystic Fibrosis Trust, finding time for others around various hospital visits and medical appointments for Cieran and Gabriel.
“It’s great to see them receive something back and I’m looking forward to meeting the whole family and seeing the adaptions for myself.”
Work on Cieran’s new bedroom and wet room can now begin, freeing up space in Gabriel’s room for a physio table.
Additional funds mean the family’s driveway will be made wheelchair accessible too, so the days of having to park around the corner so they have the space to get the boys into their wheelchairs are over.
Gemma called the home improvements ‘the best possible start to the new year’ they could have imagined.
“It’s hard for me to explain just what these home adaptions will mean for Cieran, Gabriel and our whole family,” she explained.
“They are both strong-willed boys who will thrive off the extra independence, which these changes will create for them.
“The home adaptions will be life-changing for them and for us, and it’s such a boost for the whole family.
“We’re so grateful to Steve Morgan and we’d also like to thank everyone else who has donated to the appeal.”
