Saying thanks with a song

IPSWICH father Bob Martin is getting his band in tune to say thanks to the hospital which saved his son with a bone marrow transplant.

A MUSICIAN is today set to say it with a song.

Ipswich father Bob Martin is getting his band in tune to say thanks to the hospital which saved his son with a bone marrow transplant.

Mr Martin is performing a fundraising gig with a band he had to put on hold while his son underwent treatment.

The 31-year-old, of Nightingale Road, Gainsborough, told The Evening Star he is eternally grateful to medics at Bristol Royal Hospital for saving the life of his three-year-old son Hendrix.

When Hendrix was diagnosed with a rare form of leukaemia in April 2004, Mr Martin and his wife Karen were told he had until Christmas to live unless a bone marrow transplant was successfully completed.

Within three months a suitable donor had been found and the transplant took place in July that year.

Mr Martin said his son is now running around like any other three-year-old and has recently started nursery school.

He said: “He is absolutely fine now.

“He is still in remission from leukaemia and has check ups once every three months but the hospital are really impressed with his progress.

“I don't know how we could ever thank the hospital for what they have done for us so I thought the best thing I could do would be to raise money for the people who need it.

“They have given us a lifeline. We were told that by the end of the year our 14-month-old baby could die.

“There is no way we can ever pay them back for that.”

Mr Martin and the other three members of his band, Trick of the Light, will be travelling down to Bristol this week to play at Micawbers Ale House in the city on Friday.

The band, which was put on hold while Mr Martin and his wife moved down to Bristol for three months while their son was treated, is looking to play more dates at pubs in Ipswich in the future.

The gig in Bristol will be the first time they have performed publicly in close to three years.

Mr Martin said the band is also considering trying to raise money for charity Clic Sargent, which helped support him financially when he and his wife temporarily relocated in Bristol during Hendrix's treatment.

Weblinks:

www.ubht.nhs.uk

www.clicsargent.org.uk

n Have you raised money for a good cause close to your heart? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN or e-mail eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk