Inspirational nine-year-old girl from Calderdale wins community champion award after raising nearly £10,000 for hospice

Madison Lord raised £9,545 for the hospice and was announced as joint Young Community Champion at the Calderdale Community Spirit Awards last Thursday.

The hospice has supported Madison’s twin brother, Ethan, and her family since Ethan was diagnosed with a rare degenerative condition earlier this year.

Steve Lord, Madison’s dad, said: “I’m so proud of Madi – to see her win this award is amazing and fantastic recognition of all her hard work raising money for Forget Me Not.

"Since Ethan was diagnosed, it’s been really difficult for her. She’s had to watch her twin go from a boy who could do everything she could, to someone who is wheelchair-bound, often in a lot of pain, unable to speak and with very limited movement. It’s hard for her to understand, but of course we’ve had to be honest with her about what it means for Ethan.

“Forget Me Not’s support has been so important for her – as well as to Ethan and us. Their sibling support worker is there for Madi to talk to, and she’s done sessions with the school too. Madi’s also been able to meet and make friends with other siblings who are in the same boat. It’s been a real godsend.”

Madison and her brother both attended St Andrew’s Junior School in Brighouse, until Ethan was diagnosed. To raise money, Madison decided she wanted to do a fundraiser at the school – involving the whole school.

So on ‘Madi’s day of fun’, everyone wore purple and there was a bake sale, a raffle, guess the name of the teddy bear and a sponsored run.

Madison wanted the day to include all of Ethan’s favourite things, so the pupils and teachers ate his favourite meals (pizza, dough balls, crisps, chocolate mousse and ice cream) and each class created different cardboard Mario Karts before the class teachers dressed up as Mario characters and raced each other as Mario Kart is Ethan’s favourite hobby.

When Madison was shortlisted for the awards, the hospice wanted to ensure the family had a real VIP experience at the ceremony, so with the kind support of Flowers by Jade, authors and illustrators Chris Mould and Liz Pichon, Malik Enterprises and Bowers Mill Hotel, the hospice arranged for a Rolls Royce to take the family to the event, plus full hair and make-up, flowers and a stay at the Bowers Mill Hotel where the awards took place. Meanwhile, Ethan was looked after by the care team at the hospice.

Gemma, from the hospice’s fundraising team, said: "Madison has so much to deal with, and they don’t get much time as a family, so we wanted to make sure that whether she won or not, that she had a really great night, one that was just for her."

In the video created for the awards ceremony, Madison said that winning this award would mean she could tell her brother and she would get lots of smiles from him and he would be proud of her.