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In July 1982, a good friend of mine, Lee, (then aged 9), went on a family holiday to Spain.  Tony, his younger brother had just had his 7th birthday a few days earlier.  On the 4th July, Tony fell ill in the evening' suffering with a fever and sickness.  Initially, his parents thought this was just a bug he'd picked up.  However, his condition continued to deteriorate and they then decided to take him to the local spanish hospital.  There it was thought that Tony may be suffering from acute appendicitis.  A very short time later, he became seriously ill and fell into a coma.  It was then his parents were told that if Tony recovered, he will be severley brain damaged.  They then had to make the hardest decision any parent could make - to turn their son's life support off.  This was on the 11th of July and it was later diagnosed that Tony had contracted meningitis, which as with a lot of cases, proved fatal.  Lee is now 41 has decided to try and help support the Meningitus Foundation by raising money to help further their research into this terrible illness.

I have decided to join Lee in raising money for this charity, as our family have also had first hand experience of this illness.  My son Matt contracted a strain of meningitis when he was 4 years old.  After feeling ill, he was taken to see our GP, who upon examination suspected Matt may be suffering from meningitis.  He was then taken straight to hospital, where it was quickly confirmed that he was suffering from a form of meningitis.  Luckily for us, he had contracted a different milder strain and with treatment from the hospital, made a full recovery a few days later.  This was a harrowing and traumatic time for us, but we were lucky.

We will be taking part in a 25 mile charity trek along Hadrian's Wall to raise awareness and help raise much needed funds that the charity needs to continue their research into meningitis prevention and support for families affected by this illness.

Thanks for reading this story and remember this illness happens to people and familes in the UK and around the world daily and can result in disabilities, brain damage or even death to those affected, so please show your support and help by sponsoring me on the walk.  Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

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