Stephen's Story

I've mentioned previously that I love social media - it definitely has it's dark side but for me personally it's been a way of keeping in touch with family and friends world wide, I've made a whole host of new friends (some of whom are now my closest confidantes), I've been able to source large amounts of information regarding my disability and connect to people in similar situations, I've been a part of movements to raise huge amounts of awareness / money for charities at the click of a button and I can follow some 'celebrities' that I admire / like without leaving the sofa.

One of those celebrities is Jason Manford.  For those of you that don't know who he is, Jason is a British comedian and comes across as a generally nice bloke who adores his children. My husband and I went to see one of his shows last year and it was fantastic - like going out for a night with your friends, having a drink & chat with loads of laughs thrown in! I've admired him from afar for some time for the way that he uses his fame / celebrity status - he is constantly promoting charities, causes and sharing stories via his Facebook and Twitter pages to raise awareness and to get things in the public eye that might not otherwise be seen.  

Yesterday afternoon I logged into my Facebook account and was having a look through my newsfeed when I came across a post from Jason Manford talking about a young man he met a while ago, Stephen, who has terminal cancer. He's just 19 years old. Sadly, Stephen has taken a turn for the worse in the last few days and is unlikely to survive for very much longer but when he was first diagnosed three years ago he devised a 'bucket list' of things he'd like to do.  One of the items on his list was to raise money for the Teenage Cancer Trust.  His original target was £10,000 but when he smashed that, instead of crossing it off the list and going onto the next item, he decided to push himself further and see how far he could go with £1,000,000 being his ultimate goal. Yesterday afternoon, when Jason bought his cause to the attention of his followers, Stephen had raised approximately £560,000 with the help of his friends and family; an amazing achievement.  Jason was determined that he would help Stephen reach his target before he passed away and has spent the last 24 hours actively promoting / encouraging / supporting as many people as possible to donate or at least spread the word about Stephen and his cause. He donated £10,000 of his own money and has agreed to donate all of his profits from his comedy business for the next month.  

This afternoon, the £1,000,000 target was finally smashed and the donations continue to come in for an incredibly worthwhile charity.  Stephen has managed to hold on this long and is aware that he has done it.  What an accomplishment!!

From reading the posts on Stephens page (Facebook - Stephen's Story. Twitter - @_StephensStory) he seems like an incredibly brave, humble young man that has truly lived his life to the full and made the most of every single minute.  In a final update from him yesterday he wrote on his Facebook page 'I will continue fighting for as long as I can, and whatever happens next I want you all to know I am currently in a good place mentally and at ease with the situation' - my heart was fit to burst at such a show of strength from this young man who has been dealt such a harsh hand in life.  I'm so happy that he hit his target and can leave behind a wonderful legacy.  His family must be so unbelievably proud of him.

Social media can been a mean and horrible place but it can also be one of the most powerful tools available to all of us and it's free!  I wouldn't have known about Stephen and his cause without it and I will always be grateful that I was able to make a teeny tiny difference to someone's life because of it.  You can help make a difference too - text Stephen to 70500 to donate £5 or go to Stephens Just Giving page and donate as much or as little as you can there - https://www.justgiving.com/Stephen-Sutton-TCT

Huge respect young man and I hope with all my heart that you can rest in peace knowing that you've made such a big contribution to so many lives.  And to Jason Manford - you are an awesome human being, keep making a difference.

AFUK x