We're on our way to China

From the archive, first published Saturday 8th Oct 2005.

A MUM is jetting off to China today on a gruelling fund-raising mission. Nicki Styles, 31, and her aunt Gillian Hoare, 41, will begin an 11-day trek along the Great Wall of China on Monday to raise money for the Great Ormond Street Hospital.

And Ms Styles, of Whitbourne Avenue, Park South, says she is determined to raise more than £5,000 for the hospital, which has cared for her son, five-year-old Bran-don, who has a life threaten-ing condition.

The pair will have to walk an average of six hours a day in a hot and humid climate carrying their own day sacks.

The evenings will be spent living with local people in houses, which more often than not will be without hot water or electricity.

"I'm feeling nervous now," said Ms Styles, who is train-ing to be a primary school teacher.

"We've had such a big build up to this with all the fund-raising events and now it's suddenly dawned on me that it's really going to happen."

The two women have so far raised almost £5,000 for the London hospital.

"The trek is going to be really hard for both of us but we had to do something that was going to be a challenge to make sure we could raise as much money as possible," said Ms Styles.

"If we had just done some-thing like a sponsored silence we wouldn't have raised anywhere near the same amount of cash.

"I think me and Gillian will be OK.

"I've been training hard at the gym so I think I'm prepared. I imagine out of the 45 people on the trek I'll be somewhere in the middle."

Brandon spent the first hours of his life in intensive care after being born with a life-threatening metabolic disorder.

Ms Styles had already lost another child to the same rare disorder, which affects only 28 other people in the country.

Because he is missing an enzyme from his liver Brandon is unable to breakdown ammonia and has to take medication every six hours.

Ms Styles also has another son, Bradley, eight, and daughter Krystal, seven.

But the single mum has battled on and in May this year the family won a trip to Majorca in recognition of their bravery in dealing with the disorder.

"Things haven't been easy for the family or Brandon and it takes a lot of time to care for him," said Nicki.

"But the trek has been a way for me to focus on something.

"It's a really good situation really because it's a way for me to give something back to the hospital and it's given me something to do," she said.

Lyndsay Scanlan

Archive Home