Courageous Carmela: Disabled fundraiser, 6, stars in superhero cartoon
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A disabled six-year-old watched herself star in a superhero cartoon on her own personal cinema screen as a reward for raising tens of thousands of pounds for charity.
Carmela Chillery-Watson has LMNA congenital muscular dystrophy, a life-limiting muscle-wasting disease which means she gets weaker with every step she takes.
Despite this, she has raised more than £54,000 for Muscular Dystrophy UK through her fundraising work.
A six-year-old girl with a life-limiting condition has raised more than £17,000 by undertaking a gruelling walking challenge while dressed as Wonder Woman.
Carmela Chillery-Watson, from Wiltshire, has LMNA Congenital MD, a rare form of muscular dystrophy which means her muscles are getting weaker with each step she takes, and she can t walk continuously for more than five minutes.
In September, Carmela and her mother trekked 300km over the course of 30 days to raise funds for Muscular Dystrophy UK.
Carmela walked 1km a day alone on specially-designed crutches, and did the rest with the help of her mum, Lucy.
Appearing on This Morning today with her support dog, Tinker, Carmela revealed how her fundraising was both enjoyable and challenging, and viewers quickly praised the little girl, saying she walks like an absolute boss .
Disabled Wonder Woman fundraiser, 6, finally speaks to ‘inspiration’ Gal Gadot
PA
16 December 2020, 2:42 pm
A six-year-old disabled girl who completed a gruelling walking challenge dressed as Wonder Woman has finally spoken to the actress who portrays the Marvel character.
Carmela Chillery-Watson, from Devizes, Wiltshire, has LMNA congenital muscular dystrophy, a life-limiting muscle-wasting disease, and is unlikely to live beyond her 20th birthday.
She completed a 300km charity challenge in September, using specially designed crutches, raising more than £15,000 for Muscular Dystrophy UK.
On Tuesday evening, she shared a message of thanks to actress Gal Gadot – star of the upcoming Wonder Woman 1984 movie – via a pre-recorded video on The One Show.
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Carmela Chillery Watson walked a kilometre a day for 30 days dressed as Wonder Woman with her mother Lucy, to raise funds for Muscular Dystrophy UK
Nine days into the challenge, Gal tweeted that Carmela was her real wonder girl
Carmela was diagnosed with LMNA Congenital Muscular Dystrophy in 2017
The muscular dystrophies (MD) are a group of inherited genetic conditions that gradually cause muscles to weaken, leading to an increasing level of disability
Her father Darren has been living in the shed to ensure she doesn t catch Covid
Wonder Woman star Gal Gadot struggled to hold back the tears when a superfan thanked her for inspiring her fight against muscular dystrophy.
“Hi Gal, it’s Carmela, AKA Wonder Girl,” said Carmela, referencing a September tweet from Gadot in which she described Carmela as “my real Wonder Girl”.
“I can’t wait to see your new movie. Thank you for donating to my Wonder Woman walk.
“You help me fight on living with muscular dystrophy and inspire me to do my exercise daily to help me stay strong… you help me and other children have hope.”
Speaking to the presenters, Gadot, who donated £3,442 to Carmela’s cause in September, said Carmela is “the true Wonder Woman”.
Carmela completed the challenge with her mum Lucy at her side (Muscular Dystrophy UK/PA)