This was the beginning of Simon’s dream
of a lifetime. Simon aged ten, suffers with leukaemia and is undergoing very painful
treatment at St Bartholomew’s Hospital. The treatment breaks down his blood cells
which leaves him with little or no immunity to any germs or bugs, so Simon is not allowed
to mix with groups of people or travel on public transport.
Every year Simon’s mother had taken him to see Father Christmas but
this year she could not, even though she had written to Debenhams to ask if he would be
allowed to visit before the store opened or after it had shut.
So his mother contacted Dial-a-Dream the Charity that makes terminally ill
children’s dreams a reality. Dial-a-Dream was formed in a back room at the offices of
Dial-a-Cab in 1991 by two taxi drivers, Tom Whitbread and Bob Heath and has since
fulfilled the dreams of many hundreds of terminally ill children.
The Chairman of Dial-a-Dream contacted Harrods and with the help of their Press
Office arranged for Simon’s dream to become a reality. Plans were made but at the
last moment Simon was rushed back into hospital to have his blood changed. So the date was
quickly switched to enable the dream to happen before Simon had to go back into hospital
on the 10th of December to start a new course of chemotherapy. |
Through the large doors and into the lift
expertly guided by the Head of Security, up to the toy department where Santa’s
Grotto is situated. There Simon was met by one of Santa’s helpers and her puppet
friend who gave him a handful of sweets then a guided tour of the grotto with its
beautiful display of animated characters from the Nutcracker Suite. As they reached the
end of the grotto, a very familiar laugh was heard and through the red tinsel curtains,
Father Christmas appeared. With a friendly smile on his face, he greeted Simon as though
he was the only child in the world, someone very special. After asking this young lad what
he would like for Christmas, he gave him a brightly wrapped parcel containing a computer
game and accessories supplied by the Charity. Then he was surprised to get a remote
control car as a Christmas present from Harrods. Then it was off to visit the famous toy
department with children’s cars at £13000:00 to view, as well as the vast range of
soft cuddly toys. Then on to the pets and Christmas decoration departments.
As the clock reached 10am, it was time to leave before the crowds were allowed in to the
store. He was guided towards the door where four more security man awaited to make sure
Simon’s path was not obstructed as he made his way to the taxi. Many of Harrods
customers stood and stared wondering who was this important young man being |
protected by these
large security officers. Then it was a sad farewell from all of the staff who had helped
to bring a smile to the face of a very sick child.
It was on the journey back to Rainham, Essex that Dave Falmer (L84) his
Dial-a-Cab driver, noticed a tear trickle down the mothers face, a tear of joy, that her
son had been given a dream that she thought would never happen.
If you would like to assist Dial-a-Dream contact Tom Whitbread at Dial-a-Cab on
0171-251-0581 ext 555.
We are at this moment looking for three people to run, trot or walk the 1998 Marathon. If
you can collect sponsorship we will guarantee you a place in the Marathon as we have a
gold bond which allows us five runners, we already have two.
Have a very happy new year as Simon will, after the courtesy shown by Harrods.
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