Honor Oak lodge of East Kent Freemasons today announced their sponsorship of Grace, a 4-year-old girl from Chatham who has been attending Step and Learn since she was only a few months old, having suffered two strokes in her first week of life.
Step and Learn is a charity dedicated to the physical and educational improvements of children with Cerebral Palsy and associated motor difficulties. The service they provide is not available on the NHS but is nonetheless provided free of charge to those that need it. Although based in Medway, there are currently 51 children benefitting from this service from across the whole of Kent, and a further 6 waiting to be assessed.
Since 2013 Honor Oak have held an annual Christmas party in aid of Step and Learn. On Sun 4 Dec over 120 people attended the festivities at Howard Memorial Hall, Wigmore. Guests of the lodge included children and families, and the evening was a huge success.
Once the Christmas party had concluded, it was announced that a total of £2,250 was to be donated to Step and Learn. Furthermore, it was announced that Honor Oak would be sponsoring Grace on her journey with the charity. Grace is a 4 year old girl from Chatham, who is receiving treatment at the facilities after having two strokes in the first year over her life. She has been having regular sessions since she was only a few months old, and Honor Lodge looks forward to receiveing regular updates on her progress.
Chairman of Step and Learn, Patrick Barden said,
'The sponsorship scheme allows donors to follow the progress of their sponsored child and will highlight the positive impact that Step and Learn can have on a child growing up with Cerebral Palsy or other associated disorders.'
A positive and pro-active approach is adopted by Step and Learn. They encourage a child to say, “I can” rather than saying “I can’t”. They respect and value parental contributions and put them at the forefront of their child’s development, helping them to adopt the programmes for use in the home, turning the skills learned into a meaningful array of abilities that will help in their everyday life.
Grace’s mother, Lianne said,
'The sponsorship idea sounds wonderful and such a valuable way to personally support children in their journey. I’m both humbled and privileged that Honor Oak would like to be part of Grace’s ongoing care at Step and Learn. I can’t sing their praises enough for what they’ve done for Grace since she was just a few months old.'
Step and Learn is funded solely by charitable donations. If you would like to find out how you can help, or perhaps sponsor a child yourself, please get in touch.
