Jimmy
Jimmy's Specialist Trike
Jimmy was a keen cyclist before he suffered a spontaneous bleed to the brain after a family day out. Despite his family being told there was little chance of survival after such a severe brain haemorrhage, Jimmy pulled through but as a result suffered devastating injuries. Severe hemiplegia on his right side meant he was unable to speak, walk, swallow or even support his own head.
After intensive rehabilitation over the past couple of years, including numerous operations, physiotherapy and speech therapy, Jimmy can now walk short distances but still has no use of his right hand and arm so riding a bike ever again looked very unlikely.
Mum Jenni comments: “Since his injury we kept asking Jimmy what he wanted to be able to achieve and he consistently said he would like to learn to ride a bike again. We heard of a charity through the Child Brain Injury Trust that adjusts recumbent trikes to suit different disabilities and they adjusted one for Jimmy to try out. I can honestly say that this was the first time I’d seen Jimmy truly happy in a very long time but adapted trikes like that cost thousands of pounds which we couldn’t afford as I’ve had to give up work to care for Jimmy.”
Adaptations on this special trike mean that Jimmy can control the brakes and the steering all with his left hand so he can ride independently, as well as an adjustable head rest to help him sit on it safely and securely. After Jenni saw Jimmy’s reaction she knew that this trike would be life-changing for him so set about trying to raise the funds needed.
Friends and family rallied together raising just under £1000, Jenni then reached out to our charity to see if we could provide a grant for £1000 which, combined with the contributions from friends and family, would cover the cost of the trike. Jenni adds:
“Jimmy has gone through so much in his young life already so we are very grateful that thanks to Children Today he’s been able to cycle once again with this special trike which we thought he would never be able to do again.”
