Personal stories

Niamh Shelley - stayed at our Surrey (Royal Marsden) 'Home from Home'.

Niamh Shelley and her family were the first to benefit from the 'Home from Home' project at the Royal Marsden Hospital. Niamh was being treated for acute myeloid leukaemia aged just 14 months.

With four other children to think about normal life was turned upside down. Having the use of the 'Home from Home' allowed the family to spend quality time together.

Niamh has been very well for some time now although she still has checks regularly. She has started playschool a couple of times a week and all being well she starts school next September.

Please help fund our home at the Royal Marsden so we can continue helping children like little Niamh Donate
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Lio Spinelli - stayed at our London 'Home from Home'.

Thursday 7th September 2006 was a day which changed the life of little Lio Spinelli for ever. Travelling with his mother their car was involved in a terrible car accident which resulted in the death of Lio's Mum Sasha. Lio, 4 at the time, sustained serious head injuries and a badly fractured leg and was airlifted from the scene of the accident to King's College Hospital PICU.

Lio's father Martin, his English grandparents and American grandmother who arrived from New Jersey, were offered one of the 'Home from Home' flats in London and this became their home for 2 months as they kept vigil over little Lio.

Although Lio does still have problems with his concentration, social skills and speech amongst other things he is, on the whole, a healthy happy little boy. His latest huge achievement is riding his bike again he had just learned to do this before his accident.

While Dad Martin has pulled Lio along physically and cognitively it is Lio that has restored Martin emotionally and the two of them have forged a very special father/son relationship.

Please help fund our London home so we can continue helping children like Lio Donate
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Simon Barrows - stayed at our Surrey (Royal Marsden) 'Home from Home'.

One of the first families to use the Royal Marsden 'Home from Home' was the Barrows family when son Simon was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. As the tumour was inoperable Simon had to undergo gruelling chemotherapy and radiotherapy. As Duncan and Liz, Simon's parents explained, "Prior to having the flat we had not been together as a family and able to sleep under one roof for more than two days at a time". They treated the 'Home from Home' as a place of refuge and appreciated being in a non hospital environment especially as the family spent Christmas 2005 there.

Simon is now nearly six years old and doing really well. His mother Liz describes him as "A duracell battery" never giving up, which is there in his fighting spirit. Simon has some fine-motor skills problems but on the whole he is a very determined little boy and looking to a much brighter future.

Please help fund our homes in the UK so we can continue to supply a place of refuge to families of children who have a serious and life threatening illness Donate
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