Meridian Shopping Centre raises money for children affected by serious illnesses

The Meridian Shopping Centre in Havant raised an incredible £1,256 for local children’s charity ‘Over The Wall’ from children’s visits to Santa’s Grotto. The money will help fund camps in 2015, giving children an experience of a lifetime.

Part of the SeriousFun network -founded by Paul Newman- Over The Wall children’s charity is offering children a memorable and empowering camp experience, proven to increase the confidence, self-belief and enhance the children’s resilience, reaching beyond the limitations of their illness.

The recreational activity camps will take place in sites across the UK, each of which are medically sound environments, with highly skilled medical professionals available 24 hours a day. Those attending camp will participate in activities such as archery, clay pigeon shooting, fishing, drumming circles, creative writing, climbing and kayaking.

Last year, Over the Wall supported more than 500 children and families and are hoping to reach out to at least 600 this year continuing to offer life changing experiences to children with a vast range of medical conditions.

These conditions may include, cancer and leukaemia, blood disorders, diabetes, gastrointestinal disorders such as Crohn’s or Liver disease, rheumatological conditions like Arthritis, skin conditions such as severe eczema, multiple severe allergies, heart conditions, kidney disease, neurological disorders such as Epilepsy and many more.

Over the Wall also offer separate camps for the siblings of children affected by illnesses and long weekends for the whole family to enjoy.

Former camper, nine year old Adam Sharp, who has attended Over The Wall's south camp, has cancer and a brain tumour which has led to hemiplegia (the weakness or paralysis of one side of the body), as well as a visual impairment that affects his mobility and independence.

Adam has attended the Dorset based Over the Wall camps twice, and has found that his camp experience has given him the opportunity to participate in activities he wouldn’t ordinarily have the chance to try.

Adam’s mum, Jos explains, “Adam has been to camp twice now and loves being with ‘children like him’, where all the kids are ‘different’ and everyone is accepted. He tries every activity and is encouraged to do as much as he can, in a safe and supportive way. He adores the singing, chatting and mucking about. It gives him a chance to just be a kid- without me, or his helper at school hovering over him.”

CEO of Over the Wall, Kevin Mathieson adds, “We are calling on children and families that are affected by serious illness to join us for an experience they will never forget. Our camps have been proven to boost children’s confidence, improve their self-belief, enhance their resilience and most importantly, help them reach beyond the limits of their medical condition. Two of our camps in Dorset and Staffordshire are central to Hertfordshire, so we are hoping to hear from children and families from this area. ”

If you know of a child or family that would benefit from the Over the Wall camps, or if you are a person that would be interested in volunteering on the camps, you can contact Over the Wall on 02392 477110 or go to www.otw.org.uk and apply online.

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