A nine-year-old girl from Rainhill has cycled 43 miles to raise money for Alder Hey Children's Hospital, which she describes as a second home. Aoife Farrelly took on the challenge "to help other children" and raised £1,410 in sponsorship.
Born with a cleft palate
Aoife was born with a cleft palate, a split in the roof of the mouth, and underwent major surgery to repair it at nine months old. The condition had not been detected before her birth, which came as a shock to her family.
She was born at Whiston Hospital and was assigned a nurse from Alder Hey to support the family. Since then, she has made regular trips to the hospital for speech therapy, and she wears hearing aids.
Her younger sister Sloane, three, was also born with a cleft palate. The family has since learned the condition is genetic in their case. Both girls wear hearing aids and receive speech therapy, but attend mainstream schools and are otherwise healthy.
Ongoing care and fundraising
Under Alder Hey's cleft palate team, Aoife and Sloane are reviewed every few years by a team of dentists, surgeons and speech therapists.
To express her thanks, Aoife has taken part in several fundraisers, including an Easter raffle and a Christmas present collection for children spending the holidays in hospital.
Her mother, Samantha Martin, 35, said: "Aoife has been attending Alder Hey from being a tiny baby. She doesn't see it as a hospital or a scary place, it's somewhere she goes and everyone helps her."
Family cycling challenge
Aoife recently completed a cycling challenge of more than 43 miles over several days, raising £1,410 in sponsorship. The family rode together over the summer.
Samantha said: "Aoife was really keen, determined and so proud of herself when she completed it. She loved watching all the donations coming in and it really spurred her on. We did it as a family over the summer, all riding our bikes together, so it was really nice."
She added: "Aoife has always been determined to help other children and give back to the hospital that has played such an important part in our family's lives. For a nine-year-old to have already raised so much and shown such compassion is something we are incredibly proud of."
Aoife will continue to receive ongoing speech therapy and dental treatment at Alder Hey. Her mother said: "Some people we see at Alder Hey have travelled all day to be there, and we have to go only five minutes. I wouldn't take my children anywhere else."
