Mum's tears of joy as Hartlepool boy gets £9,000 towards surgery in USA

A Hartlepool mum was reduced to tears of joy after a huge £9,000 boost for her charity campaign.
Katy Grant and her son Alex.Katy Grant and her son Alex.
Katy Grant and her son Alex.

Katy Grant was stunned when the Bradley Lowery Foundation announced a massive donation to the fund to help send Katy’s son Alex to America for life-changing surgery.

Katy admitted: “I can not say thank you enough. When I found out, I burst into tears. I can’t believe that someone would choose us.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Alex, eight, is battling an ear condition known as microtia and is hoping to get to America for treatment from John Reinisch who has developed the Medpor method of ear reconstruction which treats microtia.

The campaign in the Hartlepool youngster’s name – called Ear For Alex – has a target of £35,000 and, just a few days ago, the total raised stood at £14,000. But then came the boost from the Bradley Lowery Foundation which pushed the total to more than £23,000 overnight.

It happened because another campaign, supported by the Foundation, went £9,000 over its own target.

The Bradley Lowery Foundation had already given Ear For Alex lots of support before the latest announcement - but then came the astonishing news. Katy added: “I got a call and they said ‘we have some good news. We have got £9,000 for you’. I burst into tears. I really could not be more grateful.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Alex, a pupil at Greatham Primary School, was born with microtia which is the under-development of his external ear. He also has aural atresia, which is a lack of an external ear canal and Katy started the Ear For Alex campaign to raise funds for the USA trip.

Gemma Lowery, the mum of inspirational youngster Bradley Lowery, said: “When we phoned Katy, she was crying and we all started crying with her. They were tears of happiness and it is nice to be able to make people happy.”

But the fundraising won’t end there for Alex. A six-hour fair will be held at the Corporation Club in Whitby Street, Hartlepool, from noon on Easter Sunday, April 1.

Attractions will include stalls for both adults and children as well as a raffle, games, bouncy castle, tombola and pie and peas.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

To support the cause, people can either visit the Ear For Alex Just Giving page at https://www.justgiving.com/campaigns/charity/thebradleyloweryfoundation/earforale.

People can donate via text by texting “ears71” then the amount to 70070, on the Facebook page, or visit http://www.earforalex.co.uk.