Twinkle Twinkle Little Keane Star

Well today's the 1st of December so what better way to start the month than having a picture of our own special festive star, 4 year old Keane.

Despite his young age, Keane hasn't had his troubles to seek, however you will never find this little lad with anything but a smile on his face, such is his courage and love of life.

As a baby his Mum realised there was something not right. He was a slow developer and slow at walking and talking and when he did walk, he was unstable. He had large brown marks on his body and persistent ear nose and throat problems, however despite the fact Keane's Mum tried to get help time and again, nobody had recognised Keane had numerous difficulties and they were forever being assured everything was 'normal'.

Finally at the age of three and a half, Keane finally had a brain scan which detected a tumour the optic nerve termed as a glioma. It was only then the specialists realised Keane had a long term health condition called neurofibromatosis which causes tumours. He not only had all these difficulties but also a bleak future, being that he would lose his eyesight if and when he was operated on was devastating for the family.

After the initial shock Keane's family, friends and relatives decided to start a support group called "Keane's Stars" to help Keane and his family with unexpected expenses such as travel and have money in place should he require medical or social care which is not available on the NHS.

Keane has been a regular visitor to Royal Aberdeen Children's Hospital and the family have been grateful for all their help and support, so much so they decided that Keane's Stars wouldn't just fund raise for Keane, it would also fund raise for Archie Foundation and our very own Kiltwalk.

The Archie Foundation today is a vibrant, exciting charity that is making a real difference to the lives of sick children in the North of Scotland and the Islands who need medical care in the Royal Aberdeen Children's Hospital, in children's wards in Inverness and Elgin or in their own community.

A few weeks ago Keane was back again at Archies, but this time he was giving, not receiving!!

He was there to present a cheque for £1,700 to Lynn Fraser the lady in charge of the Archie parent accommodation at RACH. Keane's Starts had raised the money from a dinner dance, supported by many local businesses who had donated fantastic raffle prizes.

RACH are going to use this money to kit out the parents rooms with flat screen TV's, as Keane's Mum knows herself that all you want is a wee bit of normality when you get back to your room instead of staring at four walls. Keane's Stars would like to thank all the local businesses, everyone who attended the dinner dance, the Stotfield hotel for hosting the evening and of course the committee members for all their hard work.

So hopefully Keane's Stars will have a restful Festive Period as they have an extremely busy fund raising program in 2013.