Young carer wins first class holiday (From Campaign Series)

Young carer wins first class holiday

4:50pm Wednesday 1st April 2009

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A YOUNG carer will be taking his friends on holiday this month after he won an award, which included the trip for 60.

Leon Walker, 12, from Oaksend Ave, Hengoed won the Young Champions Award last year for the care he gives to his dad, Anthony Walker.

Father-of-three, Anthony whose other children Ieuan, 11 and Dafydd, 8 live with their mum lost both his legs to a rare condition called Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy, (RSD), which is still affecting him. The condition is not well known and Anthony has written a book, which he is trying to get published so that people are aware of the problem.

He had one leg removed in 2003 and the second in 2006. RSD causes severe pain and sores and the only medical treatment at the moment is to remove the limb.

Leon said: "I am proud of my dad. I don't really think about it when I'm helping him. I just do it."

Anthony said of his son: "He is great and even worries about me when he is not here.

"I am very proud of him. It was great for him to get his award. He is so good and even waits outside the shower to make sure that I'm ok."

Leon was nominated by his teacher Darren Berry at Lewis Boys School and beat 8,000 other young people in the UK to be crowned the champion in Mold last year. He was presented with the award by Welsh multi gold medal winning paralympian Tanni Grey Thompson.

As part of his prize Leon will be going on a paid holiday in April with his classmates to the Kingswood Centre in Staffordshire, which is an outward bound centre.

Anthony said: "I would really like to thank Lewis Boys School who have been very supportive to Leon. The teachers and his classmates have been extremely supportive."

This week Leon will be going to see Caerphilly County Borough Mayor, Councillor Anne Collins as her guest at the Mayor's Parlour.

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