“It just means the absolute world” - Halifax mum overwhelmed by response to fundraising effort for Charlie

Lucy Littley’s son Charlie, 11, has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair.

And Lucy is hoping to raise £11,000 to put towards the cost of a new all terrain powered wheelchair to give Charlie more independence.

Lucy, who lives in Greetland, started the fundraising initiative on Thursday night, and has already received around £5,500 in donations.

“I’ve been crying, it’s just amazing, it’s so overwhelming,” she said.

“I honestly cannot believe that, after the year that everybody’s had, there’s people out there who have lost jobs, people are skint, people have lost loved ones, people have really been through a tough time, and they’ve still put their hands in their pockets to donate to my little boy, and it just means the absolute world.

“Obviously it’s been shared a lot on social media and so many people - family, friends and complete strangers - have donated.

“It would just allow Charlie the freedom to go places he’s never been before, or he may have been when he was younger because he was lighter, but as he’s getting bigger, it’s impossible for him to go now.

“For instance, the beach. I took all my children, and the dog, to St Anne’s in September and I had to drag Charlie backwards.

“It was really hard. I felt like I’d done a work-out, and it puts you off doing stuff because you know it’s going to be such a hard slog.

“When we went to the beach that day, Charlie was sat in his chair and he couldn’t go as far out, near to the sea, where the girls and the dog were playing.

“He kept on saying ‘I want to go closer’ and I just said ‘I can’t, I can’t take you any further’.

“I know somebody who has this chair and they said it’s the best thing they’ve ever had, it’s allowed them to go over rough terrain, they can go up and down little hills so easily.

“That’s what I want for Charlie, I want him to be able to go places and to be able to do it himself, because he relies on me or one of his sisters to push him.

“We’ve taken him around Scammonden Dam. There’s a couple of steep hills there and some steps.

“Me and my girls pushed him up there, like you do with a buggy where you turn it round and bump it up the steps.

“It has been a struggle but it’s got the point now where he’s got a bit more strength in his core so he doesn’t need loads of support, so this chair is perfect for him because it can give him some support but he doesn’t need all the straps.”

Charlie is a huge FC Halifax Town fan, and Lucy says the response from the club, their players and supporters has been “unbelievable” - with The Shaymen announcing a £1,000 donation as well as individual donations from players and manager Pete Wild.

“Players, fans, the club’s page - it’s just been unbelievable,” Lucy said.

“I’m on my own with my children, so I was very reluctant to put this online, especially at this time, and it’s near Christmas, because I felt bad that all this was going on and I’m asking for money.

“I did think that I was in this alone, and I do have days where it does get hard.

“So for me to put that on and it just basically blow up, especially with the help of the team, the players and the fans - they’ve just been amazing.

“I can’t thank them enough. I’ve been in tears over the weekend over the messages saying ‘we can’t wait to see you back in the stands celebrating, we’ve seen you before’.

“These people have seen me and Charlie but I’ve never noticed them.

“I can’t wait until we can get back to The Shay and I can thank every single person individually.

“I’ve told everybody, if they’ve said they’re Halifax fans on the Just Giving page, to please come up and say hello, because it really does mean so much.

“People have been apologising for donating five pounds, and I’ve said ‘please do not apologise, you don’t understand how much that five pound means’.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s five pounds or two hundred pounds, it all means so much, and it all helps.

“It’s just amazing that all these people have come together and want to do something for my child. It’s bizarre, I’ve never had this feeling before.”

Cross Hills Methodist Church in Greetland have also done their bit to help.

“My children attend a youth club on Fridays and the church said that throughout 2019, whatever they raised on coffee morning or whatever else, they would donate to Charlie’s fund, because we were looking at wheelchairs then,” Lucy said.

“They did a bucket collection at their panto last year, they’ve done car washes, coffee mornings, an art exhibition, and a sing-along movie night.

“The chair is actually over £13,000, and they raised £2,903, so I’ve kept that separate.

“When it comes to ordering the chair, it’ll be given to me.

“Every member of the church and the youth clubs, young and old, have all helped and all contributed in some way or another.”

Lucy doesn’t think the chair would arrive by Christmas, even if the fundraising target is met, but its arrival would be a wonderful start to 2021 for the family.

“It takes a few weeks for it to get sorted, but if we can order it, that is amazing and it’s something to look forward to for the New Year,” she said.

“This year’s been rubbish, I’ve had to fight the council for transport to and from school for Charlie.

“I’ve just found out that me appealing twice, having a meeting a few weeks ago with a panel, they decided to grant Charlie the transport, but that’s been going on since March.

“With the whole lockdown going on as well, it’s been really tough.

“So getting that was a positive but it was a fight to get there.

“So this what’s happening now, I can’t stop smiling. This is a really good end to a really rubbish year.

“If we can get it at the beginning of next year it’s going to be a great start to a New Year.”

To donate, visit https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/charlies-freedom.