Our friends Salli and Nick Hunt have wonderful 2 year old boy Sam who has been diagnosed with the very rare condition known as Smith Magenis Syndrome (SMS) which is a developmental disorder that affects many parts of the body. The major features of this condition include mild to moderate mental retardation  distinctive facial features, sleep disturbances, and behavioral problems. Smith-Magenis syndrome affects an estimated 1 in 25,000 individuals.

The syndrome is due to an abnormality in the short (p) arm of chromosome 17 and is sometimes called the 17p- syndrome. Although some research has and is being done to understand SMS and how to help people with this condition  the work is limited due to lack of funds. We would therefore like to try and raise awareness of SMS and raise funds to help with further research and assistance particularly to parents of children with SMS. To find out more please visit the uk website: www.smith-magenis.co.uk

On 2nd May 2010, the small Worcestershire village of Rock are holding their annual 25 mile challenge " Pound the Bound " walk around Rock. http://www.rockvillagehall.co.uk/rvceptb.htm This year I would like to complete this walk on behalf of the SMS charity and I ( and Salli & Nick) would be very pleased to receive sponsorship donations for the  walk to go towards the SMS charity.

Many thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.