Matt's 4x4 Wheelchair Campaign

Welcome to our fundraising page, to get Matt out and about in a new 4x4 wheelchair!

Matt - a talented cricketer, double marathon runner, PE teacher, music producer and DJ, was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease in July 2018. 

Since then all of the activities that Matt enjoys have become pretty tough, if not completely impossible.

Coronavirus has also impacted Matt a lot; he's been shielding and now one of the only social activities he's able to do safely is walk Rudy the dog with his (socially distant) friends and family (...who are never distant!).  Which brings us onto why we're fundraising for a 4x4 for Matt.

His current wheelchair is only good for tarmac and even surfaces, whereas the model that we'd like to help him access, literally moves on any terrain - sand, snow, rocks, woodland ... you name it. 

Matt married Lizzy in 2016 and last year they had their daughter, Margot, who is 8 months old. 

Having a 4x4 wheelchair will give Matt, Lizzy and Margot so much more freedom as a family.  The liberation to do the simple things ... to be able to take Margot to all sorts of new places for her to explore.

The wheelchair is so much more than a set of wheels.   It's a chair that gives him opportunities to create adventures and make memories; a chair that brings him back close to his community, to his friends and to his family. 

How can you help?

1. Click 'DONATE'  below, to support and contribute to the Wheelchair Campaign fund 

2. Click 'PARTICIPATE' below to sign up and secure a ticket to take part in 'The Fun Lovers' Run' on 12th September, 2020 - event completed

3. Click 'SPONSOR' below to support a friend who is moving for Matt on the 12th September

Campaign now closed..

Thank-you so much

Love,
Matt, Lizzy, Margot & Rudy

Update

Hi everyone,

We are absolutely blown away by the kindness and support from so many people in the last 24 hours! We can’t believe we are saying this, but we have reached £14,000 on Day 2 of the campaign! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

We’ve also signed up a whole load of runners who we know are busy raising sponsorship, so we wanted to let you all know what any additional money would go towards, should we be lucky enough to raise it. As we’re sure you can imagine, there is an infinite list of equipment that can help Matt as this disease progresses, and so we’d like to put any additional money towards a hoist system for our car, a mobile hoist, aqua-therapy for Matt and a chance for him to be able to swim with Margot each week.

All of this will keep Matt moving and make us able to go out and experience much more as a family.

Thank you everybody, we are so touched and have been on cloud 9 today!

Love, Matt, Lizzy, Margot and Rudy xxxx

Further Update

Hey guys, Lizzy here...

We’ve had the craziest week! We are lost for words about how generous you have all been/are all being! Thank you so, so much.

Your generosity means we’re going to be able to make sure Matt has some extra equipment we didn’t think we’d ever be able to get to make his life a lot more comfortable. We’re also going to start a pot of money for future-proofing some of this equipment. One of the hardest things about MND is that nothing stays the same for long, so just as you get used to one way of doing things, something changes and you have to adapt again. Matt will probably need to use eye-gaze technology or chin control to move his 4x4 in the future, so we’ll definitely save some money for this adaptation. Everything we’re going to be able to buy will be used every day, so you can be sure we’ll both be reminded of your collective kindness on the regs.

And it’s not just the donations but the comments and messages of support and all the texts and posts we’ve received that are just so heartwarming. So many people are messaging to say how great it is that they are getting out and running, and that they really feel like this is bringing people together, which is lovely to hear.

Personally, I’ve loved the challenge of training for a half marathon - I’ll be honest, I was gonna do a 10k, but you’ve all inspired me! Having an hour to go running a few times a week feels so therapeutic - I think the process of trying to find enjoyment and positivity during something that is often uncomfortable and painful is jolly good practise for LIFE, and is certainly helping me out at the moment.

Thank you once again and can’t wait to see you all on 12th ❤️

Love, Matt, Lizzy, Margot and Rudy xxxx