During May Our lovely client Kim is taking on the challenge of walking 5,000 steps a day on her prosthetic legs to raise money for REMAP, after we helped her with three separate solutions.
She tells her story in her own words:
My name is Kim Smith. I was in Spain when I started feeling unwell, I then suspected I might have a urine infection. I was getting worse and had a feeling it was something a bit more serious than just an infection, so went to the local hospital. They X-rayed my back and sent me away without any other tests. I went to the doctors the next day and was given a prescription for antibiotics. The chemist didn’t have any in stock and told me to come back the next day.
I woke at 4am and woke my husband saying, ‘I’m going to die, I need to go to hospital now.’ Once at hospital, I was almost immediately put into an induced coma.
I was a busy business owner of an events business and a mobile hairdresser before this happened. Not having hands, I can no longer work, but I’m now raising awareness of sepsis on social media with quite a big following. I also go all over doing talks, helping my local hospital raise awareness with staff training. I’m really enjoying doing what I do, it’s also vital we raise awareness because so many people still haven’t heard of sepsis or think it won’t affect them as they’re fit and healthy. This is wrong, anyone can develop sepsis at any time, at any age.
I heard about REMAP on Facebook. A page I was following shared that they’d had some help from REMAP, and so I contacted them. They helped me with several things, firstly raising my sofa, then making a gadget to help hold my profiling bed controller – before this gadget I had to sleep with it across my body all night, so it didn’t fall on the floor!
Then on one of REMAP’s social media posts, I saw a quad amputee eating her dinner, cutting her own food up. I haven’t been able to do this for over eight years since I lost my limbs, so I contacted REMAP and I’ve now got an incredible tool that holds my knife and I’m finally able to cut up my own food again – this is absolutely priceless.
Annie, the volunteer who made this for me, also made me a tool to hold a pen, so I can write, and a long stick-type-thing. This is for when I go to hospital to hold a dobber as I won’t be able to lift my arms for a while, so I’ll be able to use my iPad independently with the dobber held by this tool.
Because REMAP have done some incredible things for me and these last two are so impressive, I thought that I should try to do some fundraising for them and hope my followers will donate and support me.
I came up with the idea I’d try getting back on my prosthetic legs, known as stubbies as these are much shorter and don’t have a knee like a normal prosthetic legs. So, I’m fairly close to the floor currently. In time I might go higher, but I just want to be able to walk around my home. As I’ve now moved into a wheelchair-accessible home and have space to move, I’m going to challenge myself to do steps and try to increase the amount each week.
Hopefully I can raise lots of money for this incredible charity that has helped me.
Thank you, Kim, for sharing your story and being an inspiration to us all!
If you can donate any amount, large or small, to Kim’s Step for REMAP fundraiser, please do so using the link below.
For World Occupational Therapy Day, we’re celebrating the incredible Occupational Therapists who make such a difference, like Annie Roberts. Before retiring, Annie signposted many clients to REMAP, and now, as Chair of our Milton Keynes branch, she continues to enrich lives. Here’s what Annie had to say about her REMAP experiences.
Before I retired, I was an Occupational Therapist, and I used the services of REMAP on a number of occasions. After leaving paid work, I wanted to continue to help people and volunteering with my local REMAP panel was the obvious choice.
I have been a volunteer since 2014 and the Chair of the Milton Keynes panel since April 2022. As Chair, I keep our database up to date, circulate requests for volunteers and chair our brief monthly meetings. It is not an onerous task, if you are well-organised.
As an engineer, I take on the requests which involve padding, strapping and cushioning, ie the soft materials. Occasionally this may involve working with one of the other volunteers, eg padding a head restraint that another volunteer had made.
There is a real pleasure when a client asks for something to be re-made or repaired. That they ask us to go back says it all. Giving someone some independence or improving their comfort or safety takes the volunteer a few hours, but the effect for the client is felt every day. That is a rather special gift to give.
Volunteering isn’t for everyone, but if you get pleasure from helping others and are practical by nature, there is no better way than with REMAP.
Milton Keynes’ Secretary, Nikki Hughes, explains more about her role and why you don’t have to be an engineer to volunteer with REMAP.
Hello there, Nikki here. I am the Secretary of the Milton Keynes branch of REMAP – a role I took on over 10 years ago.
My husband was already an engineer volunteer and, when the previous secretary was unable to continue, he suggested I might help. I am so pleased that he did. I am not an engineer and wouldn’t have thought about joining the crew, but there are plenty of other areas where I can support the branch.
What do I do?
I started off by just taking the minutes to keep a record of what comes in and who is doing which project, but then I realised somebody has to thank people when they make a donation. Then we began to notice that we were receiving fewer referrals and needed to do more active promotion of our services in order to maintain a presence in Milton Keynes!
To cut a long story short, we now keep tabs on where we get referrals from and try to spot gaps – potential organisations or charities which would benefit from some help. I have given a couple of talks to charities (I used to be a tutor so this was something I am comfortable with). We also host a fundraising concert in our garden.
Basically, the more we talk about REMAP the better the chance of raising the profile – word of mouth works.
Why do I bother?
I have seen the difference a solution can make:
The little boy for whom we made a walker (which carried a ventilator and oxygen bottle) styled after Thomas the Tank Engine. They came back and asked for bumpers because he was racing around the living room now!
The lady with tears in her eyes because her husband with Parkinsons has brought her a cup of tea (in the non-spill cup holder) for the first time in 20 years!
The OT who told us that the “Robocoat” we supplied had transformed her client’s life – he can now get outdoors whenever he wants to, whatever the weather.
REMAP makes such a huge difference to people’s lives. This is an amazing charity. You don’t have to be an engineer (although we do need them of course!).
There are lots of roles that the engineers are not very comfortable with. Nobody is put under pressure to take on more than they can cope with, however when we see an opportunity we can give it a go. Not everything works first time, but practice makes us better. We all play to our individual strengths and offer whatever support we feel we can give.
No matter how we make it work – I would stress it really IS worth the bother!
Kim, a quadruple amputee, shares her experience of REMAP and being supported by Paul from our Milton Keynes branch.
I contacted REMAP and asked if they could make me something to hold my bed controller because I have a profiling bed, so this morning Paul came and looked at my bed. I explained what I needed and this afternoon he came back with this, I’m blown away at how quickly it was done, and so very grateful.
They’re really amazing helping disabled people like they do, by making things to help make life easier.
Paul has been to me before to help raise my sofa for me as my old sofa was too low for me to get on, I didn’t remember but he reminded me, lovely to see him again.
Thank you so much REMAP I really appreciate this and it’s going to make things much easier.
I’m over the moon with it and the super fast service, I’m very happy. Thank you so much.
If you or someone you know could benefit from our service, get in touch.
Fundraising can be Fun!
7th August 2024
Raising funds can be daunting and nobody enjoys asking for money. However, the MK panel have found one method that is fun. Nikki tells us more.
Whilst chatting at a monthly panel meeting it came out that one of our members plays in a community orchestra. A bright idea emerged – the orchestra is always on the lookout for opportunities to perform in order to gain experience – so we organised a garden concert on a beautiful sunny afternoon.
We arranged for 4 musical groups to perform a variety of classical, popular and jazz pieces and invited friends and family along. There is no admission fee – we just put out a pot for donations and spend 5 minutes telling people all about our wonderful charity, REMAP. Add flags bunting, tea & cakes. Pray to the weather gods. It works!!
This is the 15th year we have held this event – like a child it just keeps growing. This time we estimated a record of 200 people came to see their musician friends play in public (a new experience for some). The relaxed atmosphere makes for a truly fantastic afternoon.
We collected sufficient funds to cover most of our costs for the year at the same time as raising the profile of the charity locally. We create a stand showcasing examples of recent projects and encourage people to ask for help for those in need.
So – what hobbies do your panel members indulge in? There may be hidden talent lurking… good luck!
