Back in September 2014, Steve and Sam from Free Kicks Foundation got in touch with our family through a local disability group to see if we would be interested in benefitting from the charity’s work. Little did we know, what followed from that initial contact would change our lives forever.
This is our story…
My wife, Jenny gave birth to twins (Louis and Lexie) who were born 10 weeks prematurely. The children’s development was (characteristically for premature babies) slow at first but it didn’t take long for Lexie to catch up. Early on though, it was clear Louis was having developmental issues and shortly, into his life, he was diagnosed with Down’s Syndrome. Although the early years were hard, as a family we were supported by those around us as we all got to grips with Louis’ disability.
The consistent thread that has run through Louis’ life is just how kind people (often total strangers) have been to support him and give him a normal and fulfilled life. Fast forward a few years and it was just one such act of generosity from the Free Kicks Foundation that brought a completely new dimension to Louis life.
When Steve and Sam from the Free Kicks got in touch to ask if Louis (and his twin sister Lexie, who they have always included in everything) would like to go along to Peterborough United and have a mascot experience, we all thought it might be fun although given that three of our family of four had never even been to a football game, we were also a bit apprehensive. We needn’t have been. Sam, who organised the ‘Kick’ talked us through every single aspect of the day and put all of us entirely at ease.
The day began with Louis and Lexie receiving full replica kits to wear, being given a ground tour, visiting the dressing rooms, meeting all of the players, then training on the pitch and leading the teams out from the tunnel. The game, as it happened was absolutely terrible!! A dour, nil-nil draw with Notts County in which very little happened but that mattered not a jot. Louis was absolutely hooked. For him, the enjoyable experiences are those that he can connect with on a human level. Meeting new people, seeing new things and taking in new experiences. Because his first experience of football was so personal, he fell in love with everything about the game and especially Peterborough United, and the club’s players.
Speaking of the players, Louis that day back in 2014 met a young player by the name of Jack Baldwin who had recently signed for the club from Hartlepool and was just breaking into the first team. A couple of years after Louis’ Kick, Louis was invited back by the charity to represent them at the new Kit launch. Jack Baldwin had become the club captain by now and it was one of the best moments of Louis life, when he and Jack (who Louis was now convinced was his best friend) modelled the new kit in front of hundreds of fans. In fact, Mr Baldwin remains one of the greatest inspirations in Louis’ life and a hugely valued family friend. Even, having moved on from Peterborough, he stays in touch with Louis and has been kind to him in so many ways.
So many things in Louis life have changed entirely because of those three hours given to him back in 2015 by the Free Kicks Foundation. They were the catalyst for so much of what has happened since to him. Football is now his passion and it has given him pleasure far in advance of anything we could have ever imagined. He’s since become a season ticket holder at Peterborough United. Far more though, we’ve seen him grow as a person. In confidence, in intelligence and socially. So important to him has the whole experience been that in 2018 he undertook to raise money to give other children the opportunity to enjoy and experience what he was lucky enough to experience. In the process Louis was named Peterborough Fundraiser of the year for 2018 and was also appointed (along with his sister) an honorary ambassador to the Freekicks Foundation. In almost every way we can think, the Free Kicks Foundation has helped Louis. As a family, we know that we have so much to be thankful to the charity for and are truly honoured to be associated with it.
– Chris (Louis’ Dad)