Record bid to raise €60k for Katie’s vital op
Katie Byrne, aged 6, from Cobh, has been accepted for the operation in St Louis, Missouri, but needs to have the money lodged with the hospital by before Aug 27.
Katie, who has cerebral palsy, is hoping to undergo a selective dorsal rhizotomy operation, which should allow her to walk independently.
Following the operation, however, Katie will need intensive physiotherapy. She will also require orthopaedic surgery on her calf muscles and hamstrings to achieve the best outcome. This will also be carried out at the hospital in St Louis.
“We understand this is a huge amount of money but to see Katie walk independently would be fantastic for her,” said her mother Antoinette.
“It will give her so much more freedom and she will be less restricted in doing normal things that you and I take for granted every day.
“Raising €60,000 won’t be an easy task and a lot of the locals in Cobh and our own family and friends in Dublin are already organising different fundraisers for her.
“It gives us even more hope she will get to St Louis for this operation.”
The biggest fundraiser they are planning is to break the ‘rock the boat’ world record, which currently stands at 1,428 people.
“What we are going to do is have two venues,” said Antoinette. “One will be in Cork and the other in Dublin, and we are hoping to get at least 2,000 people in each venue for Katie.
“As Katie was born in Cork but we [her parents] are from Dublin, we will be doing a Dublin versus Cork. The captain of the side with the least numbers will have to wear the other team’s jersey at a GAA match amid their own fans. It’s all in the name of fun. The cost of entering is €10 per person or €20 for a family.”
Meanwhile, anyone who wishes to donate money to Katie’s operation fund can do so at any Bank of Ireland branch, quoting account number 23665988, sort code 90-26-37.
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