A huge shout out to Joy Heenan who recently selflessly decided to encourage her friends and family to raise money for our Foundation for her birthday. Together they raised over $2,500 for our Sustained Functional Therapy Trial!
Joy had a horse-riding accident on the 24th of December in 2010 and became a T6 complete paraplegic. Aged 41 at the time with three children under the age of 10, this accident changed Joy’s life forever. Despite the challenges, she is determined to help us find a cure for paralysis and understands the benefits of rehabilitation. Our Sustained Functional Therapy Trial is the key to helping the spinal nerve to reconnect and involves activity-based rehabilitation, combined with a range of physical motor and sensory gym-based activities. This critical component will allow the nervous system to make new connections and re-learn the necessary fine control needed for proper motor and sensory function. Without the long-term activity-based rehabilitation, cell transplantation alone will not be successful.
We are so grateful to Joy, her family and friends for this wonderful donation which supports our mission to cure paralysis for all by helping to fund important and ground-breaking research.
To host your own fundraiser or learn about ways you can support please visit our GET INVOLVED page.
(Photo credit: Jessica Atkins photography)
