A group of football fans are setting off on a 45 mile walk from Morecambe to Wigan to raise money into research of a rare genetic disorder.
Joseph Kendrick is twelve years old and has NKH, (Non-Ketotic Hyperglycinemia), a very rare life-limiting genetic disorder that severely affects his development. NKH is caused by an excess of glycine on the brain.
Joseph was given just ten days to live at birth but is now 12 years old. He is severely disabled and suffers from seizures.
Joseph's Goal is a charity set up to increase awareness of NKH and to raise funds for research.
It’s thought that only around 500 children in the world currently survive with the condition, with research ongoing into treatment.
The latest fundraiser sees a group of Wigan Athletic fans setting off from the Mazuma Stadium and walking to the DW Stadium, in time for kick off in the game between the Latics and the Shrimps on Saturday.
Chris Marsh is one of the group undertaking the challenge, and told Beyond Radio: ‘’The local journalist who is the Wigan Athletic reporter, Paul Kendrick, it’s his son, Joseph, who has this rare condition called NKH.
‘’As supporters, we’ve done a number of fundraisers over the years and this is the latest one of them, to pay for research into this and other similar genetic conditions.
‘We chosen this weekend’s game, and will set off from the Mazuma Stadium early on Friday morning, walking through Lancaster, and covering 29 miles before stopping in Preston, and completing the journey on Saturday.
If any Morecambe fans would like to donate, we know times are very hard, but anything spared would be much appreciated.’’
You can donate by clicking here
In nine years, Joseph’s Goal has sent over £880,000 to NKH research, largely from Walks4Joseph, charity balls, Latics Legends football matches, bike rides, marathons and 10Ks, swimathons, spinathons, Xmas jumper days, charity box collections, numerous other fundraising events, and hundreds of donations from charitable people.
The funds raised are sent to Dr Nick Greene at UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health in London, who leads the UK arm of NKH research.
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