Boy, 12, comes to aid of cousin

Her 12-year-old cousin Cahir McLaughlin organised and performed at a “musical extravaganza” night in Dungiven, raising £2,635 in just one night to help his family raise money for the complex operation.

Eve’s mother Gina Williams, who is from Dungiven originally but now lives in England, told the Sentinel about her hopes for Eve and her amazement at the success of the fund-raising night organised by her nephew at his very young age.

Eve was born with ‘quadriplegic cerebral palsy’, affecting her arms and legs, which means “she can’t walk, she can’t sit, she can’t do anything independently.”

Her mother Gina said: “We were afforded the chance for an operation in the USA – they don’t offer it in the UK or Ireland. It is a doctor called TS Park, at the St. Louis Children’s Hospital in Missouri. It is a major operation, which is worrying as a mother, but we have been told that the minimum expected outcome is that she will be able to walk with a zimmer-frame, which would be absolutely fantastic for her.

“At the minute she can’t even get herself out of bed and all she really wants is to be running around ‘acting like an idiot’, which is what children her age are supposed to be doing.

“We need to raise £100,000 for the trip to America, the operation, and we have to stay for a long time afterwards so that she can recuperate and get the physiotherapy that is needed.

“They will cut the nerves, which will free up her muscles, but she will be almost like a newborn baby. She hasn’t ever used her muscles – right now she is as stiff as an iron bar if you touch her – so she will have to learn how to use her muscles and the clinic in America is specialised in doing that with the physiotherapy and everything else.”

Speaking about her nephew Cahir’s fund-raising efforts, she said: “We are quite a musical family, and Cahir had this idea of a ‘musical extravaganza’. He is a fantastic singer. My Dad, his Granda was a great singer, but Cahir is something else. He just has a lovely wee voice.

“To be honest, I couldn’t really believe he was able to pull it off. He’s a lovely young boy and he has always been a bit shy – he is always sort of in the background, not the star, that’s just the way he is.

“But here he is – he is only 12-years old – and he has been able to organise this whole night and come to the fore-front the way he has.”

Cahir has recently won the Search for a Star competition in Londonderry, gaining the chance to have a trip to a recording studio and make a CD in the process.

His mother, Marie McLaughlin spoke of her pride at Cahir’s achievement with the ‘musical extravaganza’. She said: “The hall was full, there wasn’t an empty chair in the place. We had been out round the doors in Dungiven before-hand to raise a bit of interest and we sold a few tickets at the doors on the night. He is from a very musical family, on both sides, and when he asked his Daddy and his uncles to help out, everyone was more than happy to help. There were four bands on the night. “I can’t believe it really. I am completely, completely proud of him. Everyone wants to help, but not everyone can actually go out and do it – organise a thing like this. He is only 12 and we were hoping we were going to get about £500 from it, but here he is raising more than five times that in the one night. He cares an awful lot about everybody and he just really wanted to do something for his cousin.”

Cahir’s Musical Extravaganza was held in the Dungiven GAA club hall on Friday night (March 9). James McMacken, an official at St. Canice’s Dungiven GAC, told the Sentinel that the club were only too willing to help. He said: “The family do have some links with the club, but because they are in the community here in Dungiven, we are glad to be able to help out in some way. The hall is there for the community and it can be used by the community. It is a great wee thing for the club to be able to help out like that. The hall is always there and we are delighted to get kids like Cahir there in to get using it. St. Canice’s congratulate Cahir on a very successful night.”

The family have a number of other fundrasing events coming up in Dungiven and the Roe Valley area, including a dinner party event this month, a relay team at the Belfast Marathon and much more. For more information about Eve and how to donate, log on to www.evesjourney.co.uk