THE DEVOTED family of a gravely ill man are hoping to finance his dream of buying a camper van so he can travel to the coast to get some clean sea air into his ruined lungs.
Becky and Craig Hanley, who wed in November last year, are hoping their Just Giving page will help them on their way to funding the £5,000 vehicle which they plan to use every other week to visit Brean.
The Church Hill newly weds undergo a gruelling daily routine – Becky is Craig’s carer – which sees the 37-year-old take 27 tablets a day, some two or three times, to help cope with his numerous ailments.
Craig suffers from Parkinson’s Disease, permanent pneumonia, osteoporosis and multiple spinal fractures – he has the bone density of an 80-year-old and has lost four inches off his height in just two years due to his spine collapsing.
He also has Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) – the umbrella term used to describe a number of conditions including emphysema and chronic bronchitis and takes intravenous antibiotics three-times-a-day.
Craig said: “The lung oxygen level of a healthy individual is 99/100 whilst that of an elderly COPD sufferer is 92/100 – for the last five years I have fluctuated between 80/100 and 90/100.”
Craig, who used to train daily at his local gym for three hours before falling ill, is now only able to walk for around 15 metres before feeling a great deal of pain.
The couple have recently been able to afford to purchase a mobility scooter which helps but ultimately need to travel to the coast regularly to prevent Craig being bed-bound by the time he is 40.
“I am at my wits end,” he said. “The only choice I have left is self help and that’s to get as much sea air in my lungs as possible.”
Craig added his doctors have recommended regular coastal visits as he is unable to leave Redditch permanently due to his need to be around his family who are his ‘support system’.
You can visit https://crowdfunding.justgiving.com/linda-wheeler to help support the Hanley’s.
