HAPPY EASTER FOR NORTH EAST FAMILIES THANKS TO POSTCODE LOTTERY MONEY
13/04/2006

Twelve North East families have enjoyed a happier Easter thanks to players of the North East’s Postcode Lottery. GoodFund, the lottery’s charity arm was pleased to award charity HCPT in North Tyneside with a grant of £5,750.

Each year, HCPT organises and funds a week long Easter break for severely disabled young people and provides respite care for their families and carers. This year, marking the charity’s 50 th anniversary, over 5,500 young disabled people and volunteers from around the world travelled to Lourdes in France on Easter Saturday.

HCPT’s pilgrimages allow young disabled people from any denomination to travel to places they might otherwise not see due to travel and high insurance costs.

GoodFund felt that HCPT deserved their support to help provide the unique opportunity for the young people to travel and additionally to provide their families and carers with a much needed break.

The young people travelling to Lourdes had a number of physical and mental disabilities such as Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, Autism and learning difficulties.

The North Tyneside group returned last Saturday; happy and grateful to the lottery support they received. They had many success stories to tell, including:

Two young people who had difficulties with their social skills and communicating found themselves happy, smiling and chatting with other people from around the world by the end of their trip to Lourdes.

Josh, who is autistic, celebrated his 18 th birthday in France amongst many new friends.

The family of one of the participants was able to use the week to take their other two children on holiday to Flamingo Land. Without the break that HCPT offered them, it would have been impossible.

Amazingly, the Lourdes pilgrimages are also to thank for a few weddings.

Consultant nurse Cath and Deputy Chief Fire Officer Brendan O’Kane met 25 years ago in Lourdes on return journey when they were youth volunteers and married two years later.

Volunteer Helen Kerrigan and Nathan Pellow (now an artist) met on the Lourdes trip in 2000 and got married in 2004.

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