Arthur Brosnan may only be five years old, but he’s already top of his class in numeracy and literacy even though he cannot speak. His mum Anna is hoping that’s all about to change if her son can get a motorised wheelchair enabled with a voice-assistance screen.
Arthur, who was born three and a half months early, has exceeded all expectations. Anna was pregnant with twins and had lost one while Arthur was expected to be a stillborn, but he still made his way into the world.
He was diagnosed with a severe form of cerebral palsy and is confined to a wheelchair with the use of his left side. While he cannot physically speak, he communicates with a form of sign language, but that is difficult as he doesn’t have the use of his right arm.
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Anna and her husband Steve live in Kingswood with Arthur and she said: “He’s done so well, he’s so active and clever. He’s absolutely wonderful and although he can’t make sounds, he remembers everything.
“He goes to a special needs school where he is top in numeracy and literacy. Arthur has a great love for music and dance, with his favourite being The Lion King.
It was music that sparked the idea of a voice enabled wheelchair for Anna. She said: “He played a song on his tablet about ice cream and pointed to it.”
“I realised he was telling me he wanted ice cream,” she said. Anna started with a GoFundMe fundraiser with a goal of £5,000 to raise the money towards the special wheelchair.
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The motorised wheelchair and communications device will cost around £12,000. She said the family’s fundraising efforts so far, which also includes the GoFundMe fundraiser, has reached around £9,500.
To reach the final amount, the students at Bristol School of Performing Arts (BSPA), where she teaches, surprised her with the news of a fundraising concert to be held on July 8. Anna said she was overwhelmed by the gesture.
She said: “They had asked me about Arthur’s favourite songs. They’ve done it as a surprise, every single student signed up for it, we’re really touched by it.
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She added that she had snuck into a rehearsal last week which brought tears as she listened to their favourite songs. Sam Board from Bristol School of Performing Arts said all the proceeds from the concert will go towards getting Arthur’s wheelchair.
The concert is being held at the Warmley Community Centre on Saturday July 8 at 7pm. Tickets are £20 or £140 for a table of eight.
