The parents of a disabled four-year-old boy were left stunned after receiving a £10,000 donation from Wrexham AFC owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. Aaron and Charlotte Perrin's son Louis, who has a rare genetic condition called TUBA1A, is a big fan of the football team.
Louis' condition causes him to have painful leg spasms, limited mobility, epilepsy and cerebral palsy. Despite this, he always stays positive and loves watching his favourite team Wrexham AFC play. The generous donation from the club's owners will help adapt their home in Wrexham.
Charlotte, 32, who works in the emergency services, was shocked when she saw the donation on their fundraising page. She told the PA news agency: "Louis' carer screenshotted the donation page and was like, 'oh my God, look at that', and then I tried to get in touch with my husband."
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Headteacher Aaron, 32, was equally surprised. He said: "I was at work and was sitting in the staff room and saw I had two missed calls from Charl and then a message from one of my governors saying 'Have you seen this?'
"I couldn't contain it; I just told everyone in work straight away. We were all amazed and so pleased and we've had friends ringing and crying on the phone. We were totally blown away by their generosity really; we were just in shock."
The family is trying to raise £40,000 to make their home more accessible for Louis. "We've gone through two sets of plans with the local council and there has been no funding available due to the cost of the project, so to see the community donate, it has given us more hope that we are going to achieve our target," said Aaron.
Charlotte added: "We just want him to be as independent and safe as he can be at home, and at the moment we have loads of temporary equipment, which can be a challenge as he is continuing to grow."
Aaron mentioned that while Louis may not understand the significance of their recent donation from the Wrexham AFC owners, his son certainly "loves being the centre of attention".
Charlotte shared a charming anecdote: "He was on the front of a local paper last week and we have it at home and whenever anyone comes over to the house, he points it out to them."
Football brings immense joy to Louis, his parents said: "When he was a baby, he would watch football on the TV a lot and its been brilliant for me as a dad to watch him be taken in by the colours, the noise and the cheering. It's been brilliant... to watch him be taken in by the colours, the noise and the cheering. Even though his speech is quite delayed, he was able to chant and cheer and it's really helped him a lot with his speech and language."
Charlotte shared that Louis often spins his wheelchair around in joy while watching football matches: "He just feels the atmosphere and I just love sitting and watching him at the matches because he is in his element," she said.
On March 23, Wrexham Police FC, a team of off-duty North Wales Police members, will play against North Wales Dragons in a charity match to raise money for Louis' fundraiser. Mr Perrin expressed gratitude towards Wrexham Police FC for publicising the cause and said Louis will be attending the match.
"I think it really was because of them that Ryan and Rob got involved and it was also so nice to see other celebrities like Nick Knowles leave messages of support," he added. The family hopes their story can shed light on the struggles many families face when caring for disabled children.
"There's so many families with either half finished builds or they have not started building at all and they're selling up or having to give up work to care for their disabled children as they cannot access funding." You can find the family's fundraiser at justgiving.com/campaign/help4louis.
