Hello! I’m Maia, and this is my friend Barry. Barry just celebrated his 82nd birthday and is a huge fan of drum&bass and techno.

I created this page with the hope of raising funds for a mobility scooter for him, as he struggles with severe gout in his legs, which causes him significant pain and limits his ability to walk. This situation is quite tough for him since he is such a social person; he truly enjoys being out and about, but in recent years, he only manages to go out on Mondays when a friend takes him shopping.

He’s not aware that I’m doing this yet, but I’m hoping to surprise him with some wonderful news as he has mentioned multiple times that he would love to have a mobility scooter!

We met at Nozstock, a music festival, this summer… he was sitting in a chair at the back of a tent wearing a bright, multicolored fluffy hat and a t-shirt that said “DRUM & BASS MODE.” Naturally, I had to go over and see what this interesting guy was all about (I ended up ditching my friends for a while just to find out his story). Since then, we’ve been chatting on the phone almost every day. He even took a train for the first time since 1997 to visit me in Pembrokeshire, where he met some of my friends and family and stayed at my family home. I just got back from visiting him and celebrating his 82nd birthday in style (he wore a sparkly silver cowboy hat).

He is truly one of a kind, absolutely hilarious, and says some pretty wild things, but he has a heart of gold and genuinely cares about people and the world to the point it pains him to throw anything in the bin that goes to landfill, so much of his flat is ‘decorated’ with random food packaging, etc. He even turned a ‘Vanish’ label from washing powder into a badge for his hat.

So, I’m reaching out to anyone who can donate, small or large, to help me in my quest to raise enough money for a mobility scooter for him.

Every little bit will be appreciated, and I will keep you all updated !!

Thank you so much in advance,

With love, Maia (& Barry - he just doesn’t know it yet;))