BromleyTimes
08 March 2006
A SICK child is set to receive pioneering medical treatment after a celebrity supported a fundraising auction.
Shea Gibbens' family were hoping to raise up to £7,000 for his physiotherapy but have now gathered around £18,000 including a ticket donation from
Big Brother winner Kate Lawler.
Shea's aunt Sue Gibbens, from St Paul's Cray, said: "The response was fantastic. We were looking at maybe £5,000 or £7,000 to get one treatment. When all the auction things started to come in we realised we had probably make a bit more than that because so many people were generous with what they gave us.
"Kate Lawler attending was really nice. It was a real boost to the evening as it was nice for the kids to see somebody they'd seen on telly. It was a really good night, we're just so grateful to everybody for supporting it." Shea, aged seven, has quadriplegic cerebral palsy and currently uses a wheelchair.
He has already learned to walk about 30 metres through revolutionary treatment in Poland.
He is due to fly out again at the weekend to spend a month having intensive therapy. Mrs Gibben's husband John did a skydive to raise funds and she told the Bromley Times: "He loved it. He can't wait to go again. He did a tandem one but next time he wants to do it on his own. There's a DVD and photos and he's been watching it over and over." Visit
http://www.euromed.pl.
