A mum from Newport who lives with a life-changing heart condition has been thanked by BHF Cymru for managing a Christmas toy collection which will help fund lifesaving research.
Kate Inwood, 51, was diagnosed with a rare form of heart failure shortly after her son Llewi was born in 2011. To show her support for the British Heart Foundation’s research into the condition, this Christmas Kate organised a collection of new and preloved toys and games at her son’s school, which will be sold at her local BHF school to raise funds for more research.
Her initiative is part of the charity’s ‘gift that keeps on living’ campaign which is highlighting stories like hers to show how vital heart research is for the millions of people in the UK affected by these conditions, and for their loved ones, keeping families together at Christmas.
Over three weeks, Kate arranged a collection of good quality items donated by families at Jubilee Park Primary School in Rogerstone. The items were sorted and weighed by the school’s Eco Committee, with a total of 278.5kg of toys, games and gifts saved from landfill and sent to the BHF shop on Commercial Street in Newport.
Kate said: “I am so grateful for the for the support from Jubilee Park’s Headteacher Miss Place, in allowing this toy drive to go ahead, and Miss Finn who heads up our Eco committee for her super support each week.”
Kate found out she had a condition called postpartum (or peripartum) cardiomyopathy (PPCM) when her baby Llewi was just three months old. Aged 40 at the time, she was shocked that the symptoms she’d experienced since giving birth were signs of a life-threatening heart condition.
PPCM symptoms including tiredness, shortness of breath, swollen ankles, and a feeling of a fluttering or racing heart, known as palpitations. The condition causes enlarging of the heart around the time of childbirth which reduces the heart’s ability to pump blood around the body properly. It affects hundreds of women in the UK each year.
The BHF funded the first UK study into this condition in 2018, which discovered that 1 in 5,000 pregnancies in Scotland resulted in the mother developing PPCM. Kate is grateful that the BHF pioneered treatments including medication, a pacemaker and internal defibrillator which have enabled her to enjoy her life as a mum since diagnosis.
Reflecting on the collection, Kate said: “I am so overwhelmed and grateful for the incredible generosity of the families at Jubilee Park Primary School. By donating they are literally saving lives.”
Head of BHF Cymru, Rhodri Thomas said: “We are so grateful to everyone at Jubilee Park Primary School, especially the Eco Committee, and Kate, for their fantastic support for the BHF. At Christmas, we usually gift material things. But for this festive season, we’re asking people to give the gift of a longer life for people with heart conditions, by helping to fund our ground-breaking research.
“Every day our 30 shops across Wales turn the public’s generous donations into funds for vital research that has turned ideas that once seemed like ‘science fiction’ into treatments and cures that save and improve lives every day. But despite all our progress, millions of people are still waiting for the scientific breakthroughs of tomorrow, so that they can spend more time with the people they love.
“It is only thanks to the generous donations of the public that we can provide hope for people like Kate and find the cures and treatments of tomorrow. This initiative shows that everyone can do their bit to help us continue to fund research in Wales, and beyond.”
Store manager Ana Vasques said: “The donations Kate has brought are amazing. The quality and range of items are wonderful, and they have already proven very popular with our customers. We are always grateful to hear from anyone who wants to find out more about volunteering at the shop or making a donation. You can call in to donate in the shop or we can arrange a collection if necessary. Give me a ring on 01633 266027 and we’ll do all we can to help.”
Shoppers are also being encouraged to add a donation at the till to raise even more funds for research.
To donate to the British Heart Foundation this festive season and give the gift that keeps on living, visit bhf.org.uk/Christmas
