Amelia's Story
A fundraising whirlwind
With her quiet determination and wizard culinary skills, 11-year-old Amelia shrugged off recent knee surgery to complete a triathlon and bake for an entire village. What’s more, she enlisted all her school friends in her fundraising mission for the Marfan Trust!
by JJ, Amelia's mother
Amelia Bidwell (11) took part in a Dorset schools triathlon relay with some of her school friends. They each swam 50m, cycled a 1,000m and ran 750m on a scorching hot day. A few tears of nervousness were shed before the cycle, but Amelia persevered and completed the course, including running over the finish line with her three team mates.
Fundraising for the Marfan Trust had included baking cakes, soup and bread which she sold to the village and raised a total of £300 personally but then encouraged all the other girls in her school (Hanford in Dorset) to donate to this cause too.
Amelia has Marfans and had surgery on both knees in December and was also born with skewfoot. Amelia, to her parents' surprise, chose to enter the triathlon, occasionally doubted herself, but as a quietly determined character, kept going at her own pace, and encouraged by her friends, she completed the task. She never ceases to amaze her family with her ability to succeed in everything she does - mostly with a smile on her face!
