More than 250 people have already joined a Facebook group set up by Angus woman Averil Fleming in a bid to send her twin daughters to the United States for life-changing surgery just hours after the mother of inspirational Perthshire toddler Jack McNaughton helped design the page.
Like Jack, two-year-old Ayley and Chloe Hirsch suffer from cerebral palsy and face a life of immobility unless 32-year-old Averil and her partner Frazer (26) manage to raise the £80,000 which would allow the girls to undergo the same procedure which has revolutionised little Jack’s life.
His proud parents Stacy (25) and Graham (30) watched in amazement as he confounded doctors’ expectations at St Louis Children’s Hospital in Missouri by standing unaided just days after the operation, which eliminated the pain and spasticity in his legs, at the end of last year.
And against the odds, he was walking with the aid of a frame a matter of weeks later despite early predictions that this would take up to a year.
Now, Stacy who met the Carnoustie family in an emotional encounter at her Almondbank home last weekend wants Averil and Frazer to experience the same joy that she did when she saw her little boy take to his feet for the first time.
She said, “Sunday was very emotional for both of our families as the girls are very similar to how Jack was before the operation. But it brought back a lot of not so nice memories, because it is so hard. Their legs felt so tight, just like Jack’s before the operation, and that was upsetting for me.
“I encouraged them to go for it because it would make such a massive difference to their lives every day we are seeing Jack do something new. The Facebook group really helped with our fund-raising and that’s why I wanted to help them set one up.”
As well as the twins, Averil and Frazer have another daughter, Lilly (6), and care for Frazer’s 14-year-old sister Maxi meaning everyday life can be challenging as the youngest girls have to be carried almost everywhere.
Ayley is able to walk with the aid of a frame, but Chloe has no movement in her lower body at all. Stacy, who also has seven-month-old daughter Rhian, added, “It’s amazing how they are able to do it it must be really difficult.
“I found having one child with cerebral palsy and a baby is hard enough, but to have to care for two plus another two children is even tougher. The girls are at such a great age the earlier the operation is carried out the better, because that makes it easier to retrain their motor skills.
“Averil and Frazer have the potential to raise really quite a lot of money and that would be great. I just hope The Courier can help them half as much as they helped us.”
The ‘Help Ayley and Chloe Walk’ Facebook page, through which donations can be made, can be accessed here.