A CHARITY chosen by Wolfscastle's Belle Curran has been presented with a cheque for £10,000, the result of months of dedicated fundraising by Haverfordwest Ladies Circle.
Ten-year-old Belle was born interstitial lung disease. This rare condition means that Belle's lungs are stiff, hard and scarred making breathing a huge effort. The Spittal School pupil has been on the emergency transplant list for a double lung transplant at Great Ormond Street Hospital for more than 15 months.
This year the ladies circle has taken on the challenge to raise money for the charities that have helped ten-year-old Belle so much.
These are Puffin Ward, Withybush Hospital; Noah's Ark Children's Hospital, Cardiff; Great Ormond Street Heart and Lungs; Ty Hafan Children's Hospice and Make A Wish.
Last week £10,000 was given to Ty Hafan. It is hoped that next April there will be a further £15,000 to split between the other four charities.
According to Belle, Ty Hafan is "the best place in the world". The charity offers free care and support both at its paediatric hospice and in the community, giving comfort to families and helping them create precious memories.
The hospice also provides short breaks for children and young people. Enabling families to take time out from their caring duties and providing a range of unforgettable experienced for their children.
The charity launched a gift tree in 2015, marking each donation of £10,000 or more with a leaf bearing the donor's name. After her last visit Belle said she would love to put a leaf on the tree.
With the help of the ladies circle that wish came true. The group visited the hospice for a special tour and were shown around by Belle. The ladies arranged a paper leaf treasure hunt for Belle, with the last leaf, a bronze leaf with Belle's name and Haverfordwest Ladies Circle written on it presented to Belle in front of the gift tree.
"There was squeals of delight from Belle and many happy tears shed by us girls as this was Belle's main request after our last visit," said Belle's mum Stella.
"This is a truly magic place. Belle and I are so lucky to have Ty Hafan, as are so many other families.
Such an enormous amount of money will be so well spent on such amazing children; making their lives just that little bit happier while giving their mums just a bit of me time. Thank you ladies for all your tremendous fundraising."
"What an amazing place," added Ladies Circle chairman, Mandy Stirling. "It is so uplifting and positive- they really deserved every single penny."
The Ladies Circle currently has a Give So Others Can Live 2019 Calendar for sale, aiming to prompt people to talk about their organ donation. This is available from Vincent Davies, Victoria Bookshop or online at peachypackages.co.uk.
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