Finnley helps John Terry decorate festive card
1:50pm Thursday 26th November 2009 in Your Town
Finnley helps John Terry decorate festive card
A SERIOUSLY ill boy has teamed up with England and Chelsea football captain John Terry to raise money for charity.
Seven-year-old Finnley Howarth suffers from a complex bladder, bowel and kidney problem.
He was invited to work on a Christmas design for the WellChild charity, which was then superimposed over England and Chelsea captain John Terry’s handprint.
The card now depicts a Christmas “tree” in the shape of the footballer’s hand, with the baubles and star Finnley designed as decorations.
Finnley, a pupil at St Matthew’s Primary School in Little Lever and Manchester United supporter, is proud of his handiwork. And he has created two more designs which were also chosen to feature on Christmas cards in aid of WellChild — “the national charity for sick children” — which helps children with serious illnesses and complex conditions and their families.
Brave Finnley has been in and out of hospital all his life. At the age of four months, a bowel condition was detected, and eventually a chronic idiopathic intestinal pseudo- obstruction was diagnosed.
“Only something like one in 50,000 children is born with this condition,” said his mum, Vicky Howarth, aged 32, who also has a three-year-old son, Lewis.
Finnley spent eight months in hospital from the age of six months, when a line was inserted into his chest for artificial feeding.
“He weighed less at the age of six months than when he was born — he was really sick,” said Vicky.
He also has kidney problems, and two years ago, the size of his bladder had to be reduced — which is a relatively rare operation — but since then, Finnley’s bladder has stretched back again.
As Finnley is only able to eat tiny amounts, he has to be fed through a tube five nights a week, for 10 to 12 hours a night.
John Terry and the other England players support WellChild through their Team England Footballers Charity — donating match fees to the charity until the end of the 2010 World Cup, and giving up their time to support the charity.
The hand designs were chosen to reflect WellChild’s logo, which is an adult holding a child’s hand.
Ashley Cole, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Ashley Young and Wayne Bridge also lined up to paint their hands and make their mark, so that seriously ill children could decorate the prints with Christmas designs for the unique cards.
John Terry said: “It would be great to see as many people as possible supporting WellChild by buying these cards this Christmas.
“I know the children have worked really hard on them and the finished results look fantastic. “ Vicky said Finnley is very aware of his condition, and he suffers from back pain and needs a lot of rest.
“He gets depressed and it does get him down some days,” she said.
But his Christmas card success, and a recent treat have acted as a confidence boost.
The family — which had never been further than Pontins because of Finnley’s condition — has just returned from to Florida, thanks to the ChildFlight charity.
“It was excellent, something he will never forget. It was the trip of a lifetime,” said Vicky.
l Cards can be ordered at http://shop.wellchild.org.uk or from 0845 458 8171
