To realise Matty’s vision for JoeWild

Our son, Matty, launched an initiative in Feb 23 called JoeWild. The purpose of JoeWild is to organise and facilitate activities for people (young people in particular) to reconnect with nature for the betterment of their own lives, their mental health and the planet. Here is a link to the website Matty created to describe his vision and the difference he wants to make in the world. Matty is so passionate about this subject because of his own mental health challenges arising from bullying at school and the grief from the death of his younger brother Joe, when he was 13. Matty knows firsthand how nature can help people and he has a deep passion for the conservation of our planet. Very sadly, on 18th March 2023, (just after Matty launched JoeWild) he suffered a "complete" spinal cord injury at C6/7 whilst volunteering for a conservation charity in Tenerife. He is currently in intensive care in the UK and is making steady progress in breathing for himself, building his swallowing capability and recovering some mobility in his arms. He has no movement or feeling below his chest and the amount of function he will regain in his hands and arms is unknown but is slowly improving. Matty’s injuries are obviously life-changing and once a space becomes available he will undergo 6-9 months of rehabilitation at Stoke Mandeville Spinal Injury Centre. His rehabilitation will be a long journey and will continue long after he returns from Stoke Mandeveille. However we have had some great discussions about the future and whilst from time to time the uncertainty is overwhelming, his passion for JoeWild is undimmed and his determination and courage to make the JoeWild vision a reality is truly inspiring. Whilst Matty will have significant levels of disability it is already clear that his great strengths are very much intact including his ability to connect to people and communicate, his leadership vision and energy and his ability to collaborate and learn. JoeWild will not only help other people overcome their challenges but it will also be Matty's life purpose and a big part of his recovery and healing. The funding we hope to raise will go towards helping Matty live an independent life so that he can lead his JoeWild initiatives from our home in Kent. In the first instance, the money raised will be used to support Matty's rehabilitation and his return to independent living but later it will go towards JoeWild events, workshops and activities and enable the growth of the initiative around the world. More specifically, the money will be spent on: adapting his accommodation for wheelchair use and space for a carer (this will mean Matty can stay close to the woods and nature around his existing home), buying an all-terrain wheelchair that will enable Matty to fully get out into the nature that he loves and run his forest bathing workshops, technology and other aides that will enable Matty's independence getting specialist rehabilitation care after he returns from Stoke Mandeville support the setting up of JoeWild so that Matty can start leading it as soon as he returns from Stoke Mandeville. This might include creating a simple facility/space in our garden for running JoeWild workshops or maybe covering the costs associated with running free JoeWild workshops for those who cannot afford to contribute. (In time, we may well establish a separate charity for JoeWild but that is further down the road). We will ensure transparency so you can see how the money has been spent and we will see if we can establish some independent governance to oversee how money is drawn down. We have been blown away by the emotional support we have received from friends, family and Matty's many thousands of social media followers. Thank you for taking the time to read about Matty's situation and vision, thank you for your supportive messages and thank you if you are able to make a donation to support Matty's future and his vision for JoeWild.