Date published: 01 April 2021 by Amber Hemming
Following news of the new ‘Roadmap to Recovery’, Chris Evans’ has announced a new date for Retro CarFest and confirmed the release of more tickets for sale on 1st April. Retro CarFest is now all set to go ahead at Bicester Heritage from 13th – 15th August.
The date move means that this all-new weekend Festival will fall safely within Step 4 of the government’s roadmap and will allow more people to come together with confidence and enjoy a fabulous weekend of nostalgia!
This year CarFest will be celebrating its 10th Birthday and will bring you the best of music, cars and stars and as a charity partner we get 10% of funds raised, alongside other UK Children's Charities.
Retro CarFest and CarFest North & South are all in support of UK Children’s Charities (like us!). The money raised from CarFest will go towards helping us continue to support families with a seriously ill child, like Anna.
Anna, now 10, was eight years old when she was diagnosed with bone cancer in November 2018.
Her mum, Laura, noticed she was limping and an x-ray showed an unexplained fractured hip. A bone biopsy confirmed it was bone cancer.
Shortly after Anna’s diagnosis, the family was referred to Rainbow Trust Family Support Worker Charlotte who has provided vital emotional and practical support to them in various ways, including attending hospital appointments with them and caring for Anna and her brother Max when Laura and her husband, Gary, run errands or have a much-needed break.
Following an emergency operation and 18 rounds of chemotherapy at Bristol Children’s Hospital from November 2018 to June 2019, Anna now has a prosthetic hip and had to learn how to walk with it.
Happily, Anna rang her end of treatment bell on 23 August 2019 and has to visit the hospital every three months for check-ups at the tumour clinic.
However, she suffered a huge setback on her first day back at school in September 2019 and had to be placed in a cast from hip to toe after a fall and is undergoing intensive physiotherapy in order to walk again.
Their Family Support Worker, Charlotte, has been a constant positive presence for the whole family and her role has adapted with their changing needs. Laura said:
“Without Rainbow Trust and Charlotte, our situation would definitely have been a lot harder. From a practical side, there have been times when Anna has been stuck at home and hasn’t seen anyone in ages, so having Charlotte come in has been great. They chat and play games and Charlotte knows all about her. When Anna was having treatment, she’d visit every week which really broke it up and gave her something to look forward to.”
Laura said Anna had been very anxious during treatment and didn’t like doctors discussing anything in front of her.
“It really affected her mentally and emotionally - she had panic attacks as she was a very sensitive little girl at that time. Having Charlotte to help keep her calm was a great help. It’s also the continuity of having her come over, she knows our story, she knows Anna as a person. If Anna was having a rubbish day and hadn’t seen anyone else, having Charlotte there to speak to makes a difference, someone who can cheer her up and support her.
“Charlotte has helped to take the burden off me and Anna to be positive throughout her treatment. We did it together which made it easier for me. She unburdened me, so we were not alone trying to help Anna through it. Charlotte is somebody who is not medical or all doom and gloom.
“Rainbow Trust has honestly been the charity that has made the most difference to our lives. What Charlotte does is not a job, it’s a vocation – not anybody could be a Family Support Worker, it’s people that live for the cause and that runs through everything that you all do.”
All CarFests are being redesigned to be safe and as COVID Compliant as possible which does mean tickets are limited, so don’t risk missing out! Check out www.carfest.org to find out more details on CarFest North & South and Retro CarFest.
