"Please help my son celebrate his first and only Christmas."
That is the emotional plea of Sarah Holmes as she and her partner care for their eight-month-old month son Luke, who only has months left to live.
Miss Holmes, from Great Ryburgh, near Fakenham, is asking people to donate Christmas trees, lights and decorations to help light up her driveway for Luke.
The plea comes after damp destroyed the family’s decorations.
Miss Holmes and her partner, Luke Cave, have been caring for Luke since he was born on March 23.
Luke was born with half-left heart syndrome, an unbalanced atrioventricular septal defect and a narrowed aorta.
To give him six months of life, open heart surgery was performed when he was just eight weeks old.
“The doctor from Great Ormond Street Hospital told me at his last appointment, around three weeks ago, that he only has a few months," she said.
“They said they would not do any more operations because the pressure in his lungs is not strong enough to complete the surgery.
“It is going to be his only one, so I want to give him all his Christmases at once.”
Luke spent the first seven weeks of his life in Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, and then another seven weeks in Great Ormond Street, before returning to Norfolk and Norwich for the rest of his five-and-a-half months in hospital.
Hoping to bring Luke home for the first time, the couple returned to their home in Coltishall in August to find it ravaged by damp, with items destroyed, including years' worth of Christmas decorations - forcing them to move to Great Ryburgh.
Now, the couple is asking anyone across the county to donate Christmas items - with success already.
“Ebi Foundation helped put lights up and donated some decorations, including a light-up stag, snow machine and some other bits,” she added.
“My brother and Luke’s dad have been putting up lights every night for the last week.
“We have got six trees so far, as well as donations from Fakenham, Coltishall and Norwich, and we’ve also brought what we can.”
If you can provide an item, you can purchase things directly from her Amazon wishlist to send to her. Or you can email Sarah.holmes10@icloud.com
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