Charity football match for local girl with cerebral palsy

A charity football match is taking place this weekend to raise funds for a local girl who has cerebral palsy.

Bonnie Wiseman, 8, who suffered complications at birth and has been diagnosed with severe brain damage, dysphagia (inability to swallow), quad dystonic cerebral palsy and epilepsy. She is a full-time wheelchair user and PEG-fed, and frequent chest infections mean she often ends up in hospital.

Bonnie loves to be read to (especially the ‘That’s Not My….’ series of books and enjoys going out on family walks in her Huckleberry Hiking Cart.

The Tekkerslovakia Super Vets V Old Chelmodiston FC match will take place on Sunday January 18 at Heybridge Swifts Football Club with a 4.30pm kick-off. Entry is by donations at the gate.

Dad Dave Wiseman, 49, a barista and chef who lives in Feering said: ‘Our primary aim in fundraising is for specialised physiotherapy for Bonnie which makes a huge difference to her range of movement but costs £118 per hour.

‘Bonnie is now 8 years old and to ensure that she has the best opportunities for the future, the more experiences, and therapies we can give her during these early years of development, we hope, will help her as she continues to grow.

‘Given that Bonnie’s development remains uncertain, so too does our understanding of what additional equipment she may need as she grows. This all comes at a considerable cost which led us to starting this campaign.

‘The Tekkerslovakia football club held a charity match for Bonnie just over a year ago and raised several hundred pounds. We’re really grateful for their continued support.’

The family is being supported by children’s charity Tree of Hope, which helps families raise money for children and young people like Bonnie for medical treatments and healthcare services not freely available to them through the NHS and social care. The charity provides fundraising guidance, campaign development, financial management, charity registration and emotional support from the Family Support team. Families like Bonnie’s benefit from having the support, tools and resources to fundraise effectively as well as access to gift aid, corporate support while also providing donor reassurance.

To donate to Bonnie’s fund or donate via the football match page, visit  https://www.treeofhope.org.uk/get-involved/childrens-campaigns/team-bonnie/ or https://www.justgiving.com/page/january18thfootballmatch