Hi all,

Thank you for taking a look at my page.

You may be aware that I have done this a few times before and am now doing it once again in memory of my little champ, Riley Thomas Gager. We have raised over £16,000 in the last 6 years and I would like to add to it this year!

Riley was born in 2003 and had many medical problems relating to an undiagnosed connective tissue disorder. This meant that he couldn't walk, broke his bones easily (for which he only needed Calpol lol - SOLDIER) and struggled to keep his lungs open long enough to get through the day and needed a breathing machine at home (which saw many episodes of me throwing sweets at him in the car to stop him falling asleep as this would mean he would stop breathing and he would tell me off and say "but I tired from school")To say he was a fighter would be the underestimate of the century!

The doctor said that he would not live longer than 10 minutes and that we should just spend time with him and let him go. He didn't give up and neither did we. He went on to live for 4 more fantastic years and had an astounding effect on a huge amount of people. 

He was an absloute one off and if he was here today, would probably be some sort of celebrity haha! He managed to start primary school at 3 years and 5 months old, which is surely a record. He was cheeky, playful and brave beyond words. He spent the first year of his life in intensive care yet seemed to think he was at a party arranged just for him. He would say "Nurse? What are you doing?" and once she would reply he would say "Why?" and to be fair this was with anyone and it was constant until he knew the ins and outs of EVERYTHING!

I have told this story before but I will tell it again, Riley was watching TV in hospital in 2006 and saw an advert for the marathon. He turned to me and said that I should do that! (Cheers son!). So I looked into it and managed to find a spot through KIDS, who were involved in helping us make Riley's life as inclusive as possible. We then used to train by running around the corridors of the hospital with me pushing his wheelchair and him shouting at people to get out of the way because "I do running!". I ran my first marathon in 2007 and Riley passed away days later. I continue to run it every year as I feel closest to him there and it is genuinely for a fantastic cause.

I could genuinely write forever about my little star but all I want to make clear is that this is NOT a sad story. Riley blessed our lives and made us all sit up and stop moaning about little things. He will always be my hero and I am so proud he was mine! (I would have been jealous if he was someone elses kid LOL) If you do not or can't donate, just please read this story and realise how good things can be in your life because happiness is not things...but the way you look at things!

Thanks for reading!

RILEY GAGER'S DAD (no one else can say that)

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