Great Wall trek to help Brody

A lifelong wish to trek across the Great Wall of China will help a severely disabled child from Dogsthorpe get the new chair he desperately needs.
Charity runner  Barry Long with Brody Kelly (8) and his mum Sharon Kelly at their home at Thorney. EMN-180519-081608009Charity runner  Barry Long with Brody Kelly (8) and his mum Sharon Kelly at their home at Thorney. EMN-180519-081608009
Charity runner Barry Long with Brody Kelly (8) and his mum Sharon Kelly at their home at Thorney. EMN-180519-081608009

Wheelchair-bound Brody Kelly (8) cannot walk or talk and is fed from a tube after being diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder before his first birthday.

Brody needs a new P Pod seat (which is like a bean bag) to let him sit in much greater comfort, while mum Sharon also wants to take her only child to the seaside for a caravan break for some respite from numerous hospital appointments.

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All that could be possible thanks to the generosity of Barry Long (65) from Chestnut Drive, Thorney, who is walking 45km of the 13,000 mile long wall later this year with daughter-in-law Krissie Horn.

He said: “The Great Wall of China is on my bucket list. I wanted to do it and raise money for a person, and somebody told me about Brody whose grandparents live four doors down from me.

“I met him and he’s a great little kid - a lovely boy.”

Sharon, of Aspen Close, said: “The P Pod costs a lot of money but it would be brilliant. The wheelchair he was given is not comfortable.

“It’s hard to take him places and do things. We have lots of appointments and it would be nice to get away from it all.”

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Barry is trying to raise £1,500 with all money going straight to Brody. To donate, visit: https://www.gofundme.com/barry039s-great-wall-of-china-walk. Sponsorship forms are also available at the Thorney Ex-Servicemen’s Club in Station Road.

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