MHF beneficiaries, Katie and Sam Bailey from Worthing, West Sussex, have been donning their aprons to cook up a feast of meatballs this November in support of our Meatball Month campaign. So far, the couple have raised an incredible £200 and are calling on others to support the charity by either hosting their own party or donating directly to the charity’s work.

Sam, who lives with Muscular Dystrophy, and his wife Katie, have been supporting the work of the charity for a number of years. Sam is a beneficiary of the charity’s work and wanted to get involved to show his thanks and encourage others to support the charity’s work. Back in 2012 avid nature lover Sam had his dream of meeting Ray Mears come true thanks to the Muscle Help Foundation.

The charity has been running a mouth-watering culinary fundraising campaign during November called Meatball Month and has been (and still is) encouraging the nation to come together, to eat meatballs (meat, veggie or plant-based), to help raise money to support the charity’s vital work in delivering transformational wish-fulfilment experiences to children and young people living with Muscular Dystrophy (MD). Over the past 20 years, the charity has made hundreds of dreams a reality for its beneficiaries. This has included everything from arranging for them to meet movie stars and sporting heroes like Al Pacino and Lewis Hamilton, through to organising amazing experiences like racing around Silverstone in Porsche 9-11s or experiencing level flight in an aircraft. The charity’s mission is simple – to provide unique, personalised experiences that turn dreams into reality for children and young people living with MD.

Sam said: “We invited lots of friends and family over for our meatball party and they all kindly made a donation, in return for being fed well! This charity is really special to me and Katie. Not only have I had my dream come true thanks to their work, but so too have many other youngsters living with MD. The reality of our lives and the cards we’ve been dealt aren’t the best by any means, but it’s the charity-organised events from the Muscle Help Foundation that give us hope, friendship and memories to last a lifetime.
“I am very fortunate enough to have recently been granted another experience from the charity which saw my wife Katie and I wheel on board a Wetwheels accessible powerboat at Mercury Harbour (Hamble), experiencing the Solent and the beautiful Beaulieu River.

“If anyone wants to support the charity by organising their own meatball party there is still time to get involved – even if it ends up being in December that doesn’t matter. Or people can simply make a donation directly to the charity if they prefer. Whatever support people can give will be going to make dreams come true for youngsters living with MD. I speak from experience when I say that the impact the charity makes is amazing.”