Mums’ charity ball plans after life saving treatment for daughters
Two small business owners from the Sleaford area have plans to hold a ball in aid of charities close to their hearts that have supported their daughters.
Hairdresser Grace Sheppard, who runs The Style Lounge in Leasingham, and Lois May of LM Building and Maintenance Services from Sleaford are organising the M & B Charity ball at Woody’s Bar in Woodland Waters, Ancaster, to take place on Saturday September 27, from 6.30pm until late.
Tickets are all sold, but make a donation or to gift prizes contact 07940 399090 or email [email protected] or visit The Style Lounge on Facebook
Funds from the black tie event are being raised for Children’s Liver Disease Foundation, Kidney Care UK and the hospital wards that supported their two daughters.
The mums are also asking for donations of raffle and auction prizes or donations. They have already got prizes from Nottingham Forest FC, Next, McLaren, Yorkshire Wildlife Park and Ty to name a few.
Grace explained that her daughter Mabel, now three was diagnosed with a rare liver disease, Biliary Atresia, at three weeks old.
"This affects 1 in 20,000 children and is the leading cause of paediatric liver transplantation,” said Grace.
"Mabel had a procedure at three weeks old, five hours in theatre at Birmingham Children’s Hospital to try and manage the disease and postpone transplant.”
This procedure, with only a one in three success rate, failed and Mabel was then in end stage liver disease, being so severe her organs were slowly failing and she was being fed intravenously to keep her alive.
After six months in hospital and four failed offers, a match was found and a life saving transplant went ahead on August 21, 2022.
Grace explains: “The Children’s Liver Disease Foundation not only support the children at the time, but all the way through school into their adult life. Along with continuous support for the families, as do Ward 8 at Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
"They kept my child alive and gave her a second chance at life, which is exactly why I want to give something back.”
Grace’s friend Lois has a little girl, Beau who was diagnosed with a condition called Duplex kidney while still in the womb. This is a condition where your kidney is spilt into two.
Beau was born prematurely and was struggling to breathe and so was admitted to intensive care at Nottingham.
However, within a few months of getting home Beau became really poorly and suffered constant infections, continuously being admitted to hospital and on antibiotics.
Beau was unable to gain weight because of her illness and had to be tube fed and is still being fed this way at 14 months old, meaning she is underweight (just 13 pounds at 11 months old).
At around six months old Beau’s duplex kidney had only 20 per cent function, leading to her being admitted under the Specialist E17 Renal and urology unit in Queens Medical Centre, Nottingham.
Beau had become resistant to the majority of antibiotics and was then diagnosed with a rare condition which meant that her ureter was not connected to her bladder.
Her duplex kidney dropped to zero per cent function and Beau was admitted for major surgery to remove the majority of the Ectopic Ureter. She will have to be continually monitored for infections and kidney disease.
Grace said: “Without the support of Beau's medical team and specialist unit, Beau's quality of life would have remained incredibly poor which is why we are so passionate about raising funds for some incredible causes.”