Portballintrae Boat Club donates massive £10,000 to fundraiser for little Joniece
Portballintrae Boat Club has donated £10,000 to the GoFundMe campaign for Joniece Sheppard, a four-year-old girl with cerebral palsy.
The incredibly heartwarming contribution was made less than 24 hours after a fundraiser was set up for life-changing surgery for Joniece, who has faced numerous health challenges due to her condition.
Joniece’s feeding has been done through an NG tube, leading to severe discomfort and frequent hospital admissions. The only viable solution is a PEG tube, but the waiting list for this procedure is five years long.
Joniece’s father, Matthew Sheppard explained the dire situation: "Joniece’s current feeding method requires her to remain stationary for 16 hours a day, preventing her from attending Sandelford School, where she receives essential therapies and social development. The PEG tube surgery would greatly improve her quality of life, but the NHS waiting list is just too long."
Matthew took to social media to express his overwhelming gratitude.
"You lot are bloody amazing," he said. "Less than 24 hours after setting up Joniece’s GoFundMe, we have overshot the target. This surgery was our number one objective, and we didn’t actually think we would hit the target but were hopeful it would be something to help.
"With more donations coming in and events still to happen, we are now in a situation where we can offer Joniece even more of the things we only dreamed of, like specialised equipment and aftercare. We can also help other families who have been a rock of support to us throughout."