A young girl who is nonverbal and requires help with care and feeding has enjoyed her very first family bike ride.
Ruby Grimshaw, from St Helens, had meningitis when she was born as well as a condition called encephalitis, which causes an inflammation of the brain. This then caused cerebral palsy and her parents thought they "might lose her" after she was incubated for a month.
But despite this, she continued to fight and is now a 10-year-old who "loves the outdoors". Her condition however affects all of her limbs and she has difficulty coordinating her movements.
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Ruby uses a communication device along with facial expressions and gestures. Because of Ruby’s condition, she requires help with all her care, feeding, dressing, washing and everyday activities.
But thanks to a generous donation from the Steve Morgan Foundation, young Ruby can now go out for family bike rides for the first time on her tandem tricycle. The £8,500 tricycle enables parents Bernie and Graham to transport the youngster around in her wheelchair.
Since then, the family has been making up for lost time as Bernie said: "Ruby loves it. It’s brilliant. When we asked her if she enjoyed it she put her thumb up and smiled so you know she’s happy. We plan go further afield and I can’t thank the Steve Morgan Foundation enough. I can’t put into words how much difference they’ve made. Thank you."
When the family began looking at solutions so Ruby could spend more time outdoors, they found the "perfect" tricycle, manufactured by Van Raam, but they "couldn't afford the costs". Bernie added: "It was then that we read a story about the Steve Morgan Foundation helping somebody just like Ruby through their Enable Fund and we decided to apply for a grant."
The family contributed £500 towards the cost with the Steve Morgan Foundation meeting the remaining £8,000. It has already transformed the family’s life.
The Enable Fund supports people in financial hardship, who are in need of specialised equipment, including mobility aids, wheelchairs, buggies and trikes. Liam Eaglestone, chief executive of the Steve Morgan Foundation, said: "The purpose of the Enable Fund is to help people like Ruby and her amazing family.
"A powered wheelchair or specially adapted trike can literally open up someone’s world and take them to places they’ve previously not been able to go to."
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