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Tour For Tom

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Hi All
 
As some of you may be aware, an old friend of ours Tom Walker is going through some extremely difficult health issues, full details are given below. To help assist Tom and his family we are undertaking a cycling challenge to raise funds towards adapting his home to improve accessibility and give him greater independence.
 
The challenge will be to ride as a team from the school that we all attended, St Davids in Wrexham to Tom’s current place of work - Celtic Manor, Newport. Undertaking the 125 mile challenge on the 9th December are Simon Morait, Lee Davies, Russell Hardy, Richard Hughes, Ian Jones, Craig Tudor and Tom’s brother David Walker.


For those of you who are not aware


 Tom is 37 years old, married to Jackie with two boys Ollie (9) and Finlay (5). Their family home is in Ystrad Mynach, Hengoed, but Tom was originally born and raised in Wrexham.
 
Tom studied Sports Coaching and played rugby for UWIC between 1998-2001. He is also a former rugby player at Llandovery RFC, where he played 164 games between 2001 & 2009. One of his most memorable playing moments was winning the Welsh Cup for Llandovery in 2007. 
 
Tom is currently employed at the Celtic Manor Resort, Newport, where he's a Leisure Membership Sales Manager. Tom has been working at the Resort for over ten years and, a highlight being his part in bringing the Ryder Cup to Wales.
 
In January 2016, following a spell of feeling unwell with headaches and vertigo,  Tom was diagnosed with a brain tumour - he underwent a successful operation at UHW Cardiff followed by 6 weeks of radiotherapy. 
 
Tom made a strong recovery and returned to work, but subsequently he suffered with further symptoms, and by the beginning of 2017 there was another suspected tumour at the top of his spine. An operation determined that the tumour was Intramedullary (inside the spinal cord), and thus the operation was unsuccessful. Further investigation also considered that the mass could also be scar tissue resulting from the radiotherapy. Tom deteriorated quite quickly, losing use of his legs, so then underwent treatment to reduce the swelling in his spinal cord. 
 
Whilst the treatment he received helped alleviate swelling in the cord, symptoms did not improve, and recent investigations have confirmed that tumour is present within the spinal cord and also depositing in the brain. Tom is now paralysed from the chest down, with weakening of the upper limbs. As a result, he hasn’t walked or stood unaided for some time, relying solely on a motorised wheelchair to get around. Tom is currently receiving chemotherapy and based at Ystrad Mynach Hospital.


We would be extremely grateful for any donations
 
Many Thanks for your support
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Donations 

  • Gareth Evans
    • £20 
    • 6 yrs
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Organizer and beneficiary

Simon Morait Ian Jones Russell Hardy Richard Hughes Lee Davies Craig Tudor David Walker
Organizer
Jacqueline Walker
Beneficiary

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