Heart of England
Co-operative Society donates £1,000 to Birmingham Children’s Hospital charity
Friday, August 12, 2016
Cash awarded in recognition of hospital’s ongoing treatment for Pride of Coventry & Warwickshire award winner Chloe Dixon
The award was as a thank you in recognition of the hospital’s ongoing treatment of eight-year-old Chloe Dixon, a Warwick schoolgirl who has been under its care for most of her short life.
Born with myelomeningocele – the most serious form of spina bifida – and with a tumour on her spine which prevented her right leg and foot from developing at a normal rate, Chloe was only a baby when her mother Nicola was told she would never walk.
But the determined youngster proved the doctors wrong and at the age of 15 months Chloe, a Woodloes Primary School pupil who lives on Woodloes Park, took her first steps.
Today she even practises tae kwon do, the kicking-based martial art, and enjoys a whole range of other activities, including swimming and riding her bike.
In between all her favourite activities Chloe spends her time raising money for various charities – including the hospital and Myton Hospice.
Nicola said: “Chloe is an amazing girl. She’s been through so much for her eight years but not only does she fight it with determination, she goes beyond, raising money to help others too.
“Over the past eight years she has been on different wards including high dependency, neurological, and the burns unit. She’s had four operations and been on a different ward every time. With this in mind we couldn’t choose just one or two wards over all the others so we have left it to the hospital to decide.
“I would like to thank the Heart of England Co-operative Society for its generous donation as if it weren’t for businesses and individuals who help the hospital Chloe wouldn’t be able to pursue the activities she so thoroughly enjoys, nor would she be able to continue living her life to the full.”
Earlier this year Chloe won the Child of Courage title in the Pride of Coventry and Warwickshire Awards. The award was sponsored by the Heart of England Co-operative Society and Coventry Building Society.
Ali Kurji, Chief Executive of the Heart of England Co-operative Society, said: “We were delighted to see Chloe win our Child of Courage award and are pleased to present this £1,000 to Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity in her honour.
“Despite her very young years she has been through a great deal yet she never lets it hold her back and in fact, if anything, it makes her even more determined to seize the moment and live her life to the full, helping others as she does so. She is a true inspiration and we are pleased to be able to help the hospital in accordance with her wishes.”
Tanita Mistry, Regional Fundraiser at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “We are incredibly thankful to Chloe, her family and the Heart of England Co-operative Society for this fantastic donation.
“The money will go a long way to making a huge difference to the lives of our brave children and their families as we continue our plans to improve our facilities – enabling us to treat even more children from Birmingham, the West Midlands and around the country.”
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