Skegness Stagecoach manager to take on 180-mile cycle challenge to support brave tot with leukaemia

Chris Kelk, operations manager for Stagecoach, is a family friend of two year-old Maxton Bowman as the tot’s dad, Mark, also worked for the company before relocating to Shilton in County Durham.

Diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukaemia, Maxton is in need of a specialist bed costing around £2000. To help with this, Chris created the challenge ‘Charity Bike Ride for Maxton The Brave’ to raise the money.

“This little boy had already gone through so much in his two short years of life,” Chris said. “He fights as hard as the day he was born. I will be pushing myself to the limit cycling from Skegness to Shildon, which is a gruelling 180 miles over two days in August to raise vital funds to get Maxton the equipment he so desperately needs. With Maxton’s complex needs he cannot be left unattended at any point night or day. A safety bed for Maxton is a bed that's made of soft material, a bed that is enclosed so he can not hurt himself or get out and wander.”

Speaking about Maxton’s diagnosis, the family said they first noticed a change in his health just before his second birthday last year.

"He had just found his feet and was being a regular tot and running about happy as Larry,” explained mum Coralle Bowman. “But not long after this he developed a limp and was unable to use his legs.”

After five weeks of going back and forth to A&E, the family was finally given the devastating diagnosis of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

"His case a was a bit mind-boggling because his bloods were showing everything was okay,” Coralle said. “This kind of cancer is really aggressive once it gets a hold, and doesn’t often show itself in the early stages.”

Maxton’s case is further complicated due to his non-verbal autism, developmental delays and eating and sensory disorders. Thankfully he has regained the use of his legs – but this, in itself, presents a risk for the youngster.

"He’s got no understanding of danger,” Coralle explained. “My husband Mark and I currently have to take it in turns doing night shifts to stay with him in his room so we can keep him safe, so for him to have a specialist safe bed to use at home would be amazing.”

Since being diagnosed on September 10 last year, the tot has been on a nine-month course of intensive chemotherapy.

"It’s been a rollercoaster,” Coralle recalls. “Because of setbacks, his treatment plan could carry on now until he is five. He turns three later this month, and he’s such a strong little boy. He can’t talk to us in words, but whenever we see him running around with a smile on his face, we know he’s okay.”

Chris’s colleagues at Stagecoach have been donating to the fundraiser for Maxton – where the total currently stands at £135. To show your support, visit his visit his GoFundMe page