At the Ladies Lunch in 2015, we were so happy to launch the fundraising campaign for the Sundance Kids, Michael and Ned Hickey, the grandchildren of last year’s President Michael ‘Butch’ Cassidy.

Sinead, Butch’s daughter and mum to the two boys, shared a massive milestone with us last week and we thought all those members who so kindly supported the boys would like to hear an update.

To recap, the brothers both have a diagnosis of cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy affects movement and posture and is caused by brain damage before, during, or after birth. The brain damage underlying CP cannot be reversed and produces life-long disabilities. The campaign was to raise fund to bring Michael and Ned to We are hoping to bring Michael & Ned to a leading American Neurosurgeon – Dr. T.S Park, in Missouri, USA to undergo a Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy Procedure, SDR involves sectioning (cutting) of some of the sensory nerve fibers that come from the muscles and enter the spinal cord. The campaign was successful and both boys were able to receive this treatment.

Back to last week! Up until Monday, Michael could just 7 independent steps but on Thursday, he did a massive 96 independent steps. He walked! And it won’t be long before his little brother Ned will literally follow in his footsteps.

As a club, we are so proud to have been involved in some small way in making this happen and look forward to hearing about their progress in the future.

Michael and Ned in 2015

Michael and Ned today!