Wirral Life March 2019 | Page 12

IN BRIEF HELP RAISE FUNDS FOR OWEN'S TREATMENT KINGS OF LEON TO HEADLINE SEFTON PARK FESTIVAL Owen Murphy is a two year old boy from Meols, Wirral. After a healthy full term pregnancy, Owen suffered severe oxygen starvation at birth and wasn’t expected to survive. Thankfully he did survive but has suffered severe brain damage. Fusion Presents which will take place on Friday 30th August, will be headlined by American, alternative rock band, Kings of Leon; who will be performing a UK festival exclusive set, with songs from all seven of their albums, in the heart of Liverpool. As a result Owen has quadriplegic cerebral palsy. Owen has complete understanding but is severely affected physically. Owen cannot stand, sit, walk, talk or eat. Despite his huge physical challenges, Owen is an absolute joy who loves books, Thomas the tank engine and has the biggest smile. The multi award winning and internationally acclaimed band will be supported by a stellar line up of talent including Franz Ferdinand, Echo & The Bunnymen and BRIT award winning artist Sam Fender; with more to be announced. His parents are fundraising for Owen to travel to the USA to receive stem cell therapy which they hope will help Owen in his rehabilitation post his huge brain injury. Owen will be the youngest child from the UK to receive this treatment. The donor of his cells is his little brother, one year old Zach. When Zach was born, he had his cord blood banked and this will now be sent to Duke University, North Carolina where the pioneering treatment will take place. Owen's mum Joanne said: "We have been tirelessly fundraising for the past two years through children’s charity Just4Children and 2019 will be the year we go for the treatment, however, we are still short of funds to cover the remaining cost of the treatment and the post intensive physio that is recommended post the stem cell infusion. We are aiming to raise £15,000 to cover these costs and want to ask the local Wirral community for any help they can provide. We want to organise pub quizzes, family fun days, to be local businesses chosen charity of the year; anything – to help give our boy the best chance at living the life he deserves." To donate, visit Owen's Justgiving Page at https://www.justgiving. com/campaigns/charity/just4children/ourlittlewarrior. Or to contact Joanne, call 07889 995123. 12 wirrallife.com Event Director, Damien Sanders says ‘Liverpool is an iconic city, entrenched in music heritage and we’ve wanted to launch a new event for the last couple of years. The biggest challenge has been finding the right artist for the job. We’re over the moon that we were able to secure one of the world’s most successful rock bands to launch Fusion Presents and we cannot wait to see them perform in our new home, Sefton Park.’ Tickets for Fusion Presents are now on sale. Pricing will be; General Admission – £54.50 + BF (£4.95) VIP – £165.00 + BF (£9.95) Tickets can be purchased from The Official Ticket Store – www.fusion-presents.com Fusion Presents Sefton Park, Liverpool Friday 30th August 2019 Website: www.fusion-presents.com Twitter: @fusionfest Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fusionfestival/ Facebook: facebook.com/fusionfestival