An engineer is determined to go far more than the extra mile to say thank you to hospital staff who saved his son’s life.
Andrew Johnson, 45, of Alton, is planning to pound the streets of Stoke-on-Trent at this summer’s The Potters ‘Arf marathon to raise funds for Manchester Children’s Hospital where his six-year-old son Charlie was treated for a series of life-threatening strokes.
Now, with Charlie back at school and full of life, Andrew has set his sights on raising £1,500 as a way for the family to say thank you to medics who successfully treated the rare condition, Bow Hunter’s Syndrome.
Senior Development Engineer Andrew works at Staffordshire-based excavator giant JCB and launched his fundraising bid at the company’s world headquarters in Rocester with help from Charlie, wife Julia and nine-year-old daughter Isabella.
Andrew, pictured above with Charlie, said: “Just after his fifth birthday, last February, Charlie was rushed to hospital and scans showed he had suffered a stroke which on investigation turned out to be his third – the previous two were silent so went unnoticed. It affected his mobility, and he was very poorly.
“He was allowed home fairly quickly and made a good recovery but then in April he suffered another two strokes which affected his balance and speech.
“The Manchester doctors diagnosed him with a very rare condition in children called Bow Hunter’s Syndrome where the neck vertebrae trap an artery causing blood clots.
“At the beginning of June, he had surgery to fuse the top two vertebrae in his neck which stops them trapping the artery and since then he’s been doing brilliantly well.
“He went back to school in September at St Peter’s in Alton. He’s back playing football with his friends and loves riding his bike and having swimming lessons.
“I have been overwhelmed by the treatment and care the hospital gave Charlie and their tireless efforts to diagnose and treat him.
“At the hospital there is a wall commemorating all the people who have raised funds and while Charlie was having his last MRI scan, I sat reading it and thought I really wanted to give something back too.”
Having run The Potters ‘Arf three times before, Andrew has now set his sights on revisiting the gruelling thirteen-miler on Sunday, June 11th.
He added: “It was 2016 when I last ran it and I’m a couple of stones heavier now. I’m in training with Alton Runners Club and I’m determined to get round and hopefully hit my £1,500 target.”
Andrew has set up a Just Giving page for anyone who wishes to sponsor him and help raise funds for The Manchester Children’s Hospital, at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/charliejohnson22
