The smiling woman in a wheelchair is my daughter, Louise, who is approaching her 50th Birthday. For more than half her life she has been battling Multiple Sclerosis. Her legs which once enabled her to enjoy swimming, walking and cycling, no longer support her to stand unaided and her upper body weakness keeps her permanently sitting in a wheelchair. What she longs for more than anything else is to be able to stand independently, cook for herself, reach the shelves in supermarkets, talk to people at the same eye level, stand at the bar with friends, join her choir in standing while they sing, and do all the independent actions most people take for granted.

There is a chair which would enable her to do this - the Genie standing wheelchair (www.geniestandingwheelchair.co.uk). These wonderful chairs are individually made to suit the needs of the user and they are very expensive - in Louise's case the cost would be in excess of £11,000. As we are both no longer able to work, this is way beyond our means, though we are saving hard.

Louise's consultants, physiotherapists and occupational therapists have all said that standing would be of huge benefit, not only for her MS, but also for the heart failure and colitis she suffers from.

If you feel able to make a donation we would be enormously grateful, as it will hasten the day when we can put in an order for Louise's Genie chair. We are hoping to initially raise £3,000 which covers the deposit. If we can raise more than this then we can get even closer to our overall target.

Thank you so much - any donation is deeply appreciated,