United Kingdom – Teen to hold fundraiser for sister with vWD & Williams syndrome
May 13, 2014; Posted by: WeBleed staff
Brooke Stark, 13, to hold charity event for her sister Melissa, 2, who suffers from two rare disorders.
Brooke Stark has been able to watch and see how her little sister, Melissa, has dealt with two genetic conditions over the last two years and wants to help. Brooke and her mom Katy are both members of the Williams Syndrome Foundation and recently came up with the idea of holding a fundraiser for it. The event will take place at Second Avenue Resource Centre on Saturday, May 24, from 10am to noon, and will include a cake sale, raffle and children’s entertainer Poncho Pete to benefit those like Melissa who have struggled with the condition.
A little background on Williams syndrome it is a rare condition that affects about one in 10,000 people worldwide and causes developmental delays and learning disabilities. In addition to Williams syndrome, Melissa also has von Willebrand Disease Type 1, which means her blood has trouble clotting when she gets injured or cut, and she was born with three holes in the heart, which doctors hope will heal.
“It is hard. I have got seven biological children and looking after Melissa on her own is harder than all the others. They are quite capable of going off and playing by themselves, whereas Melissa can’t. She has to be enticed into playing and it’s the same with food,” Melissa’s mother Katy told the Grimsby Telegraph. “Once we had the condition confirmed at least I knew I wasn’t being a bad parent.”
Melissa is currently visited once a week by an educational support worker and is about to start going to the nursery at Queensway Children’s Centre of the United Kingdom for one hour a day.
Photo Credit – Stark Family/Grimsby Telegraph
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