A seven-year-old schoolboy has raised enough money to buy his best friend a top-of-the range electric wheelchair to give him freedom of movement – more than doubling an initial fundraising goal in just one week.
Kind-hearted Dan Miceli Demajo initially hoped to raise €14,000 to help his friend, Eric Silvio, who has the muscle degenerative disorder Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.
But that goal was smashed within a day of his story appearing on
Times of Malta and, one week later, Dan has raised €33,623.
Dan Miceli Demajo, accompanied by his brother Seb, running alongside his best friend Eric on horseback as they celebrate smashing a target to raise funds for his state-of-the-art powerchair.
Imagine running around the playground and climbing stairs every day with weights strapped to your ankles, or having your hands tied as you get up from your desk.
That is what seven-year-old Dan Miceli Demajo experienced when he stepped into the shoes of his schoolmate Eric Silvio, to understand what it means to have a muscle degenerative disorder.
Dan’s next step is to run 15km to raise funds to buy Eric an ultra-light, all-terrain powerchair that will allow his friend to “enjoy a world without boundaries”.
Eric has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), a condition characterised by progressive muscle degeneration and weakness.