William Ladenburg
William's page
Fundraising for The Winnicott Foundation CIO
Story
A few months ago, in a fit of enthusiasm and almost certainly thanks to a confidence-inducing few pints, I decided that I was going to bike from London to Paris (with Hugh Tallents, Anthony Nathan, Thomas Foster and Jimmy Tillotson). Having now committed to the task, I am rather regretting it as I squeeze into some lycra and order numerous pots of Vaseline!
As you probably know, I am no Bradley Wiggins - and considering how tired I am after a quick bike ride into work, this is going to be quite an ask!
Enough of the frivolity, though.
The real reason I am doing this is to raise money for a cause that is very close to my heart. My son, Arthur, was born at St Mary’s, Paddington on July 18 2010 with serious complications arising from a stroke that he'd had approximately 33 weeks into my wife Becky's pregnancy.
Until he arrived, neither we nor the doctors had any idea that anything had gone wrong during the pregnancy. So the appearance of our baby, described by the doctors as ‘small and in very poor condition’, took our breath away for entirely the wrong reasons.
Arthur spent the first two weeks of his life in the neo-natal special care unit of St Mary’s, known as the Winnicott Neonatal Unit, where he - and we - received the most incredible care and support.
He was subsequently transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital, where he had major surgery to insert a shunt into his brain that helps fluid drain away from it - and on which he will be reliant for ever.
We had many ups and downs in the months after he was born - not least because the doctors reiterated again and again that Arthur had probably suffered a certain amount of brain damage from the stroke but that we'd only be able to tell how much as he developed.
The one constant in our lives at that time was the help and goodwill we received from the staff and facilities of the Winnicott Foundation (www.winnicott.org.uk), the charity that supports the neo-natal units at St. Mary’s and Queen Charlotte's hospitals.
As Arthur continues to go from strength to strength and his long-term prognosis is increasingly positive, I feel grateful every day to all the dedicated doctors and nurses who looked after him in those early weeks and for the follow-up care that he continues to receive. As with many smaller charities in the UK, the incredible work that they do goes relatively unrewarded and I am passionate that they should receive more recognition for helping so many babies recover from life-threatening conditions.
I will be so grateful if you could dig deep and help raise some significant sums for the Winnicott Foundation. It will be gratefully received not only by me but by the countless parents facing similarly difficult situations every day.
You can donate here: www.justgiving.com/William-Ladenburg
Lastly, below is an article that Becky wrote about Arthur last year, which reiterates how much the Winnicott Foundation did for our family.
Thank you so much,
William