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As Lexie Eveleigh grows, so too does her independence.
The three-year-old girl is the only reported person in the world with a combination of two rare chromosomal abnormalities.
For any parent, their child’s first steps are a momentous occasion.
But for Kerrie Eveleigh, seeing Lexie walk towards her unaided last week was all the more special because doctors had doubted it would ever happen.
With the assistance of the Bendigo community, Lexie has progressed from shuffling around on her back, to using a walker and walking frame, to a harness.
She has had surgery to improve her hearing and eyesight, after which Kerrie said she noticed a marked improvement in her daughter’s development.
By November, Lexie was able to walk unassisted for short distances – further, if she had a hand to hold on to.
About a week ago she walked from one part of the house to another, unassisted.
Kerrie said Lexie had been walking about ever since.
“To be able to see her make so much progress has just been amazing,” she said.
The Bendigo girl’s next step to greater independence is being paired with a Smart Pup.
The assistance dog will be trained by Smart Pups Australia especially for Lexie, and will lessen her dependence on her parents in certain situations.
“He’ll be able to go with her wherever she goes,” Kerrie said of the dog.
Though the Eveleigh family has been approved for a Smart Pup, they need to contribute at least $20,000 towards training costs.
Training an autism assist, seizure response or mobility assist smart pup, with full public access certification, costs $25,000.
A multi-skilled dog takes extra training and costs about $1000 more.
Smart Pups asks that families fund raise or donate a minimum of $20,000 towards those costs.
Training starts once the payment has been received.
Kerrie expected the training program for Lexie’s pup would take 12 – 18 months.
The sooner the family meets its fundraising target, the sooner they can look forward to Lexie having that assistance.
Smart Pups has outlined two online options to donate to Lexie’s dog: a direct bank deposit, or a PayPal transaction via the Smart Pups website.
It’s Her Gym and The Kiwanis Club of Bendigo, which helped buy Lexie the equipment needed to help take her first steps, have been rallying support within the Bendigo community.
Sue Walton, of It’s Her Gym, encouraged people to enquire about putting a collection tin in their place of business, organising a fundraiser, or making a donation by calling 0447 731 666.
Donation instructions from Smart Pups:
All donations made are charitable donations to Smart Pups.
To let us know that your donation is in support of a particular Smart Pups family you can use ONE of the donation codes provided below when completing a direct Bank Deposit or PayPal transaction.
Donations without a donation code will be allocated to the general training
Program to help Smart Pups cover the balance of the training costs for our families.
DONATION CODE OPTIONS:
- FULL NAME CODE: Lexie Eveleigh or
- ALFA CODE: lxvlgh or
- NUMERIC CODE: 80616
To donate via direct deposit - Smart Pups Westpac | BSB: 034198 | ACC: 415185
To donate via PayPal - Click on the BIG RED Smart Pups Donate Button on the website at www.smartpups.org.au
A direct Bank Deposit does not attract any fees. If making a donation via PayPal you must manually type the child’s name in the ‘NOTES TO SELLER’ field at the time you make the transaction. Please be aware that, as there is no fee waiver in place for charitable donations, PayPal will charge Smart Pups an administration fee on each donation.