Introduction and request for help

[SirPhantom]

Hello everyone

 

Firstly a little about myself I have recently become a model train enthusiast, I am not what you would consider a serious modeler, however I would love to put together a layout at some point (space allowing).  For me it started with purchasing the Coca Cola Christmas set, for it to run around the Christmas tree, as I put it together I had a flashback to doing it as a child (with a Thomas and friends set). A fact that I had completely and utterly forgotten about, it was almost like a repressed memory. It rekindled my interest almost immediately and I now have 18 locomotives in just over a year of collecting.

 

However today I am not writing this for my own benefit, I am instead writing on behalf of my friend who has a little train obsessed boy who is fighting Neuroblastoma. It is an uncommon/rare form of cancer that affects young children, if any of you are football fans you may recall Bradley the little boy who became friends with Jermain Defoe. It is that form of cancer which is now threatening to take Teddy away, he is receiving treatment on the NHS but what he really needs is a vaccine to prevent him relapsing. The survival rate is effectively a flip of a coin when you first get it but it drops to below 10% if you relapse and relapsing is very likely. If we can raise enough money we can however get him to the US for a vaccine which will significantly increase his chances.

 

He has just turned 4 and needs help to raise funds for this treatment. I am therefore asking for any help you can offer, whether you can help raise awareness with model train clubs, heritage railways, post on Facebook/Twitter or if you can donate yourself. Any help at all will be greatly appreciated.

 

His fund raising page can be found here https://www.solvingkidscancer.org.uk/children/teddylichten/

 

Or you can search “Teddy Lichten + neuroblastoma”

 

His family is also regularly posing updates on this facebook page, you can see he has recently been in a cab of a train running from Brighton to three bridges:

https://www.facebook.com/TeddyBigC

 

I am really sorry that my first post on this forum is such a depressing one but I hope we can turn it into a positive by helping Teddy get the treatment which could save his life. If I have posted this in the wrong section of the forum please feel free to move it.

 

Also if there are other forums, social media or even a youtuber who you think would willing to help then please do let me know. 

 

To add something of a bit more general interest I attach a picture of my March 1955 Trix locomotive, which I adore despite not having a three rail track to run her on. My display is a bit on the eclectic side of things...