Whitchurch Alport recently held a successful fund-raising day for young Zac Harris, a local supporter who suffers from Cerebral Palsy.
The 9 year old, who lives a short distance from the club's Yockings Park ground, led the teams out on the first day of the season when Alport hosted Daisy Hill, and has enjoyed the limelight ever since featuring on the front page of the local newspaper back in July.
Zac's parents are aiming to raise about £40,000 to cover the costs of surgery that will help him achieve his dream of playing football. As part of the fund raising campaign, Alport held a fun day which raised over £1400 pounds for the Harris family.
Zac's mum Charlene has revealed that they can now book Zac’s first appointment in Bristol.
“This money will go towards an operation that could help Zac walk unaided,” she said. “It was a great day and thankfully the weather held out.
"We can’t thank Whitchurch Alport enough for what they have done for us. We had never had any contact with them before, but for them to approach us off their own backs was brilliant.
"Zac’s a big fan now and he’ll be a regular visitor to their matches with his dad Mark.”
Martin Wild, Whitchurch Alport Press Officer said: “Everyone at the club loves Zac and we wanted to do something to help. He’s become something of a local celebrity in the town as he’s been in the Whitchurch Herald a few times now.
"He was also club mascot for Shrewsbury Town’s home game against Gillingham on Saturday which saw another £800 raised via bucket collections held outside their Greenhouse Meadow Stadium.
"The money we have raised is only a start as there are other things going on that will continue to raise additional funding in the weeks and months ahead.
"Our involvement has given Zac a bigger platform if you like, so people who otherwise might not have been aware of his plight, are starting to ask questions and become involved themselves.”
The photo below shows Alport joint manager Luke Goddard spending some time with Zac.
