Boy’s Fundraising Thank You For Life-Saving Op

A kind-hearted boy from Worcester crossed the finish line after walking over 31 miles, raising over £3,280 for our charity as thanks for the life-saving care he received at our hospital for a brain tumour as a tot.

Eight-year-old Jack Philpotts took on our Kids Summer Challenge to complete 31 miles during the month of August to raise funds to support the hospital. It’s a special place for Jack, as he remains a patient following life-saving surgery to remove a brain tumour when he was just 20-months-old.

Jack was born a happy and healthy baby but his mum, Emma, became concerned with his development. By the time Jack was a year old, he could sit unaided but showed no signs of being able to crawl or pull himself up onto furniture and over time, his ability began to deteriorate. After Emma shared her worries with her health visitor, physios and nursery nurses, Jack was eventually referred to a paediatrician, who raised concern over the circumference of Jack’s head and referred him to a local hospital for a CT scan.

Emma took Jack for his scan and was horrified and heartbroken when it showed a tumour growing within her son’s brain. From that moment everything felt like a blur as Jack was rushed to our hospital by ambulance for emergency surgery to remove the tumour.

The operation went well and after just three weeks in recovery, Jack was allowed home but that wasn’t the end of his journey. Not long after Jack’s discharge, he was readmitted after being diagnosed with Hydrocephalus, which meant he had a build-up of fluid on his brain and required a second operation to fit a shunt to help drain the fluid and relieve the pressure in his skull.

Thankfully, Jack’s second operation went well and even though he has more recently been diagnosed with epilepsy, he doesn’t let anything get in his way and lives a happy and active lifestyle, returning to the hospital only once a year for check-ups.

As a family, the Philpotts are eternally grateful to our hospital for the care Jack received and when Emma saw the ours Kids Summer Challenge advertised on Facebook, she knew it would be right up Jack’s street.

The challenge asked young participants to complete 31 miles during August, by walking, cycling, swimming or however they chose, with the choice of completing one mile a every day, or completing at their own pace. Jack chose to walk his miles and completed the challenge in just 19 days, raising more than 32 times his original target.

Emma said: “I’m so proud of Jack and the effort he’s put into this challenge. We owe the hospital his life, and he knows what a special place it is and how vital it is to support it. He completed every mile with a smile, knowing he’s helping other poorly children.”

Jack’s story and his fundraising efforts also inspired his dad, Tim’s, workplace, civil engineering company, Shannonside, where he works as an excavator operator. They’ve committed to making an annual donation to Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, giving £1 for every hour Tim’s excavator works.

Annie Eytle, Head of Public Fundraising at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “We’re incredibly grateful to Jack and all of our other young fundraisers who have worked their socks off to complete our Kids Summer Challenge, making it our most successful challenge yet. Along with his challenge mates, the phenomenal amount Jack has raised will help us continue supporting countless brave patients and their families.”