Please help my brother raise money for our friends!

engstrom0304

engstrom0304

engstrom0304

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5 Apr 2008
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Hey guys...

My brother is doing a 200km bike ride on 31st May - June 1st... heres what he has to say:

"On the 31st May to 1st June I plan to do a 200km bike ride with two of my friends, Angus Rees and Ant Fitton. This is an attempt to raise money for my good friends Lonnie and Rachel Brown. Lonnie’s son Josh, 5, who is a wonderful kid, has two tumours in his spine and needs to travel to Jacksonville, in Florida, USA, to receive specialist proton therapy treatment for these tumours. This money is being raised to assist Josh’s father and step mother to go with him for the three month period. Josh’s mother and her boyfriend are being paid for by other charities for flights, accommodation, a hire car and money to cover their bills at home. Lonnie and Rachel however have received very little of this and desperately need to raise money in order to go. Any donation will massively help them to go with little Josh and will be much appreciated.

Please just pledge a little, it'll mean a lot!"

The reason why it is so difficult to get charities support is that the mother will has randomly decided that she does not want the father, Lonnie, to see his son, and the law these days usually sides with the Mother unfortunately. This is why we desperately need your support, as young Josh is in a desperate state, which will be a whole lot worse if he cannot see his Father.

We cannot use websites such as justgiving as it is not an official charity.


If you'd like to help, then please donate a couple of pounds to the paypal address [email protected], with a note saying that it is a donation for Josh.

Thank you everyone :)
 
So they're raising money so he and his girlfriend can stay in the states for three months while his son has treatment?

What's happened to their boy is dreadful and best of luck to him in his treatment, but this isn't charity, it's begging.
 
Why Florida, and not the UK? Sorry to sound cynical, but when I hear of British people having to go to the USA for treatment it makes me wonder if it's because the treatment won't be provided by the NHS because it's not going to help.

I don't mean to be nasty, but there's an awful lot of people clambering for whatever expensive treatment or pills are diagnosed for a condition, even if it's not going to help them...

I am not at all suggesting that's what is going on here, but it's surprising to say the least that it can't be done in the UK. We do have proton therapy here, although I don't know if it's the same as the USA.
 
The Halk said:
Why Florida, and not the UK? Sorry to sound cynical, but when I hear of British people having to go to the USA for treatment it makes me wonder if it's because the treatment won't be provided by the NHS because it's not going to help.

I don't mean to be nasty, but there's an awful lot of people clambering for whatever expensive treatment or pills are diagnosed for a condition, even if it's not going to help them...

I am not at all suggesting that's what is going on here, but it's surprising to say the least that it can't be done in the UK. We do have proton therapy here, although I don't know if it's the same as the USA.
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As far as I know, Proton therapy is only available in the USA and is only just emerging in the UK.. At At the moment it is not available in the UK as only trials are taking place at the moment... However as to the exact details I'm not sure why the NHS are sensing him to USA ... The tumour at the moment is not life threatening so long as proton therapy can be done soon. Proton therapy is much much more accurate than radiotherapy which is currently available in the UK... My brother is cycling 200km so is putting in the hard work, rather than just begging for money...
 
engstrom0304 said:
As far as I know, Proton therapy is only available in the USA and is only just emerging in the UK.. At At the moment it is not available in the UK as only trials are taking place at the moment... However as to the exact details I'm not sure why the NHS are sensing him to USA ... The tumour at the moment is not life threatening so long as proton therapy can be done soon. Proton therapy is much much more accurate than radiotherapy which is currently available in the UK... My brother is cycling 200km so is putting in the hard work, rather than just begging for money...
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Proton therapy is available in England and if the NHS thought it would work they would either a) carry it out in England or b) send them overseas at no personal cost, as established by the NSCT. 50 patients were treated in England last year!

It sounds like the NHS have declined the option of proton therapy because they doubt it will work. I feel for the parents as they'll want to do anything for their child but carrying out a futile therapy due to false hope, especially after doctors have told them it won't work may put the child through more pain :(
 
It looks like they are doing b) and the mother and step-father are getting their costs covered, this seems to be for the father and step-mother.
 
I'm pretty sure that as it's a tumour in the spine they are trying to get rid of the tumour without having to cut it out in surgery which would paralize him. It isn't a tumour that is life threatening at the moment.
 
if the mother is not letting him see the boy then why will him going change that won't he just still be unable to see his son but in Florida instead of England?
 
Tefal said:
if the mother is not letting him see the boy then why will him going change that won't he just still be unable to see his son but in Florida instead of England?
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Because social services have granted Lonnie access... The problem with all that however is that it means he doesn't get funding...
 
engstrom0304 said:
Because social services have granted Lonnie access... The problem with all that however is that it means he doesn't get funding...
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does social services rulings apply in America or can she just tell hospital security to throw him out and they do as the bill payer demands?
 
Why doesn't Lonnie just go? It'd halve the costs and Rachel could stay at home to look after the house etc. The boy only needs to see his parents, really.

I'm sorry but I can't donate to this cause but I admire what your brother is doing for them.
 
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