• Business
  • Life
  • Celebrity
  • Sport
  • Blog
  • Auto
  • Tech
Stories from SWNS
Advertisement
  • Home
  • News
    The Führer’s Prophecy by Brian Klein 

    The Führer’s Prophecy by Brian Klein 

    How to find safe non-gamstop casino games

    How to find safe non-gamstop casino games

    Conservation zoos ‘have powerful potential to reverse extinction’

    Conservation zoos ‘have powerful potential to reverse extinction’

    Royal Navy aviators raising cash to rescue stray puppy

    Royal Navy aviators raising cash to rescue stray puppy

    “I got a new haircut – now I look exactly like Frodo Baggins from Lord of the Rings”

    “I got a new haircut – now I look exactly like Frodo Baggins from Lord of the Rings”

    £6.8billion turtle-shaped floating city unveiled

    £6.8billion turtle-shaped floating city unveiled

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Business
  • Life
    • Celebrity
  • Tech
    Why Is Cloud Storage Migration Best Left To Professionals?

    Why Is Cloud Storage Migration Best Left To Professionals?

    How Tech Is Empowering Small Businesses And The Economy 

    How Tech Is Empowering Small Businesses And The Economy 

    The Technology Behind Forex Trading – And its Wider Impact

    The Technology Behind Forex Trading – And its Wider Impact

    Must-Have iPad Accessories At PITAKA Black Friday Sale Event

    Must-Have iPad Accessories At PITAKA Black Friday Sale Event

    How To Select The Best Lead Generation Software For Your Business: Our Top Tips

    How To Select The Best Lead Generation Software For Your Business: Our Top Tips

    Best Technologies in the Gambling Industry That Are Worth Your Attention

    Best Technologies in the Gambling Industry That Are Worth Your Attention

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
  • Review

    The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild gameplay on the Nintendo Switch

    Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun Review

    macOS Sierra review: Mac users get a modest update this year

    Hands on: Samsung Galaxy A5 2017 review

    The Last Guardian Playstation 4 Game review

    Intel Core i7-7700K ‘Kaby Lake’ review

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    The Führer’s Prophecy by Brian Klein 

    The Führer’s Prophecy by Brian Klein 

    How to find safe non-gamstop casino games

    How to find safe non-gamstop casino games

    Conservation zoos ‘have powerful potential to reverse extinction’

    Conservation zoos ‘have powerful potential to reverse extinction’

    Royal Navy aviators raising cash to rescue stray puppy

    Royal Navy aviators raising cash to rescue stray puppy

    “I got a new haircut – now I look exactly like Frodo Baggins from Lord of the Rings”

    “I got a new haircut – now I look exactly like Frodo Baggins from Lord of the Rings”

    £6.8billion turtle-shaped floating city unveiled

    £6.8billion turtle-shaped floating city unveiled

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Business
  • Life
    • Celebrity
  • Tech
    Why Is Cloud Storage Migration Best Left To Professionals?

    Why Is Cloud Storage Migration Best Left To Professionals?

    How Tech Is Empowering Small Businesses And The Economy 

    How Tech Is Empowering Small Businesses And The Economy 

    The Technology Behind Forex Trading – And its Wider Impact

    The Technology Behind Forex Trading – And its Wider Impact

    Must-Have iPad Accessories At PITAKA Black Friday Sale Event

    Must-Have iPad Accessories At PITAKA Black Friday Sale Event

    How To Select The Best Lead Generation Software For Your Business: Our Top Tips

    How To Select The Best Lead Generation Software For Your Business: Our Top Tips

    Best Technologies in the Gambling Industry That Are Worth Your Attention

    Best Technologies in the Gambling Industry That Are Worth Your Attention

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
  • Review

    The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild gameplay on the Nintendo Switch

    Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun Review

    macOS Sierra review: Mac users get a modest update this year

    Hands on: Samsung Galaxy A5 2017 review

    The Last Guardian Playstation 4 Game review

    Intel Core i7-7700K ‘Kaby Lake’ review

No Result
View All Result
Stories from SWNS
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Little lad with muscle-wasting disease wants to complete bucket list before he’s unable to walk

Jess Young by Jess Young
March 15, 2018
in News
0
Little lad with muscle-wasting disease wants to complete bucket list before he’s unable to walk

Draven Jefferies, 8 with his meerkat.

0
SHARES
46
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

The parents of an eight-year-old boy have just two years to complete his dream bucket list – before he can no longer walk.

Draven Jefferies, eight, suffers from a rare muscle-wasting disease, is hoping to visit Disneyland and swim with dolphins before he is forced to use a wheelchair permanently – and will ultimately claim his life.

The animal-loving boy from Hawkinge, Kent, was born with his oesophagus and food pipe connected, and spent his first eight months in an intensive care unit undergoing surgery.

Distraught parents Jemma Godden, 33, and Jason Jefferies, 37, were then given the heartbreaking news that he suffered from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and a rare gene mutation.

Draven Jefferies, 8.

Jason said: “Draven was born at the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford, and he was taken almost straight away and rushed to University Hospital Lewisham.

“His oesophagus was connected to his food pipe, so he was taking in air, which caused his stomach to swell.

“That was the first time we knew something was wrong – he was rushed into theatre and we weren’t even there for that.

“He had a few more ops, and he was in intensive care for eight to nine months.

Draven Jefferies, now 8 in hospital.

“Eventually he came home but it’s been hospitals most of his life, at least once a week plus doctors appointments.

“It’s like being an emotional hurdle race, there has never been good news and something new always ends up coming out.

“It’s the operation he had in the beginning which is causing problems and his lungs are failing.

“He also had a tethered spinal cord, and there are a few things which keep going wrong.

“There’s no treatment for him really – the Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy is like a bad cherry on top of the things you don’t want really – he’s never going to get better.

“It’s really hard because he knows his legs don’t work properly and he’s such a strong minded child, but he doesn’t know what’s wrong to the extent we do.”

Draven Jefferies, 8 with his meerkat.

Other items on the list include owning a pet fish, riding in a submarine, and ‘meeting as many animals as possible’.

Siblings Josie, ten, and Rogan, three, lead different lives and Jemma says Draven’s increasing awareness of those differences – and knowing he won’t be able to walk – can frustrate him.

Mum Jemma said: “I just want to help to create as many memories for my soft-natured little boy as possible.

“He has always wanted a bunk bed, my carpenter friend Andy Bradley decided to make him one for free and firefighters donated the mattresses.

“A little while ago he told me how he was worried he wasn’t going to be able to dance when he’s older.

“But you’ve got to be strong – I tell him that he will be able to dance, he’ll just have to wiggle the controller on his wheelchair in time to the music.

“It is hard as a parent though, I have to be strong in public when I hear a child making fun of how Draven walks or something similar, but sometimes at night I just cry.

“I can’t describe what it does to you as a person when you receive bad news after bad news, it is horrible.

“When doctors finally allowed Draven to be looked after at home, it was awesome, but shortly after we discovered through more tests that he had the disease.

“It broke me and I didn’t know what was going on, everything was so overwhelming.

“Some of the things people have been prepared to donate has been incredible.

“We are going Tenerife soon, where Draven will swim with dolphins, and a complete stranger also bought tickets for him to go on a submarine.”

Draven Jefferies, 8 in hospital.

The fire-fighter loving boy was thrilled when Folkestone firefighters delivered two mattresses to his house, so he can share bunk beds with Rogan.

So far people have donated a number of luxurious experiences to Draven, including feeding bears at Port Lympne Nature Reserve, a day at home with meerkats and meeting motocross hero Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne.

Draven Jefferies, 8 with his tarantula.

Jason added: “We got some disheartening news about his mobility, and it’s not far off that he’ll be permanently in wheelchair, so we thought of the things he’d like to do before he can’t walk.

“He’s got the biggest heart in the world, he’s an animal-lover through and through, and there are a lot of small things which would make him really happy.

“It’s more the animal side of things he really wants, he’s always had a connection with meerkats because we got him a meerkat teddy when he was born.

“He still has it, and they’re a massive part of his life – he just wants to meet as many animals as he can.”

Previous Post

Britain’s oldest rescue dog finds retirement home at the age of 20

Next Post

Homeless man ordered to pay £645 for missing £1.50 train fare

Jess Young

Jess Young

Next Post
Homeless man ordered to pay £645 for missing £1.50 train fare

Homeless man ordered to pay £645 for missing £1.50 train fare

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Stay Connected test

  • 121 Followers
  • 60k Followers
  • 190k Subscribers
  • 23.8k Followers
  • 99 Subscribers
  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
Women love cheesy chat up lines, a study has revealed

Top 20 cheesy chat-up lines ladies really love

March 5, 2014
The top ten most well-known bingo phrases

The top ten most well-known bingo phrases

January 21, 2014
The horses thunder towards a jump at the Grand National

Amazing racehorse names which never made it

April 23, 2014
HGH Injections Brands: Which Ones Are Best?

HGH Injections Brands: Which Ones Are Best?

January 14, 2019
Chris Fear, 33, outside the Coral betting shop which is refusing to pay out on his 485/1 winning bet

Boycott Coral! Bookmaker faces protest after refusing to pay out on a football fan’s 485/1 bet

184
Women love cheesy chat up lines, a study has revealed

Top 20 cheesy chat-up lines ladies really love

147
Women feel invisible to the opposite sex at the age of 51, researchers found

Women begin feeling invisible to men ‘when they turn 51’

138
UKIP candidate claims Jews murdered each other in the Holocaust in masterplan to create State of Israel

UKIP candidate claims Jews murdered each other in the Holocaust in masterplan to create State of Israel

105
Why are UK mortgage approvals at an all-time low?

Why are UK mortgage approvals at an all-time low?

March 28, 2023
Mobile gaming vs PC gaming: Which is better for playing casino games?

Mobile gaming vs PC gaming: Which is better for playing casino games?

March 19, 2023
The Führer’s Prophecy by Brian Klein 

The Führer’s Prophecy by Brian Klein 

March 16, 2023
6 Benefits of Customs Clearance Services

6 Benefits of Customs Clearance Services

March 10, 2023

Recent News

Why are UK mortgage approvals at an all-time low?

Why are UK mortgage approvals at an all-time low?

March 28, 2023
Mobile gaming vs PC gaming: Which is better for playing casino games?

Mobile gaming vs PC gaming: Which is better for playing casino games?

March 19, 2023
The Führer’s Prophecy by Brian Klein 

The Führer’s Prophecy by Brian Klein 

March 16, 2023
6 Benefits of Customs Clearance Services

6 Benefits of Customs Clearance Services

March 10, 2023
SWNS

SWNS all rights reserved. Copyright 2020

Follow Us

Browse by Category

  • Auto
  • Blog
  • Business
  • Celebrity
  • Gaming
  • Life
  • Lifestyle
  • News
  • Pictures
  • Property
  • Review
  • Sport
  • SWNS
  • Tech
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized

Recent News

Why are UK mortgage approvals at an all-time low?

Why are UK mortgage approvals at an all-time low?

March 28, 2023
Mobile gaming vs PC gaming: Which is better for playing casino games?

Mobile gaming vs PC gaming: Which is better for playing casino games?

March 19, 2023
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

Real Fix is a trading style of South West News Service Limited.
Copyright © 2020 South West News Service Limited.

No Result
View All Result
  • Business
  • Life
  • Celebrity
  • Sport
  • Blog
  • Auto
  • Tech

Real Fix is a trading style of South West News Service Limited.
Copyright © 2020 South West News Service Limited.