Schoolgirl injured in crash between bus and tractor in Wrotham receives donation after Charlton Athletic crossbar challenge win
A schoolgirl left with life-changing injuries after a school bus crash has been given a boost by a family friend who donated £7,000 to help her after completing a remarkable football challenge.
Grace Tutt from Gravesend[1] was seriously injured after her school bus collided with a tractor in Meopham in May[2].
Grace Tutt with dad Andrew. Picture: Andrew Tutt
A fundraiser set up in her name by family friend James Thompson has raised more than £160,000 and last Saturday he added to that when he hit the woodwork in front of more than 14,000 people at Charlton Athletic’s The Valley stadium.
James was nominated for the crossbar challenge by Grace’s dad Andrew after his name was selected and he realised he would not be able to do it after being diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
“I nominated James as deep down I knew, if someone said to me have £1,000 on someone to hit the bar, I’d have picked James all day long.
“Because of how much he has supported me, my family and Grace since what happened, I just knew he’d do it. It meant as much for him to do it as it did for me, that was so important.”
James, whose attempt struck the bar twice, added: “When he messaged me, I knew I was going to hit the bar.
Grace Tutt has been left with life-changing injuries but is still smiling. Picture: James Thompson
“How could I not be inspired by Grace? She is a miracle, she is healing bones and doing things no one else can do. It was written in the stars. It’s going to sound cliché, but it felt like I hadn’t kicked it, it felt like it was kicked for me.
“The power of Grace’s spirit was behind my foot. As soon as I kicked it, I knew it was hitting.
“I’m used to hitting the bar and not the back of the net, this time I was pleased to do it.”
On Wednesday, May 22, Grace was involved in a catastrophic accident which saw her life change forever when her school bus collided with a tractor[3] in Wrotham.
She was airlifted to London’s Kings College Hospital and given just a 20% chance of surviving.
Several police cars and ambulances at the scene of the crash. Picture: John Dalton
Andrew said: “She is now registered as a quadriplegic because her spine was severed in a couple of different sections. Then on top of that there were multiple other injuries.”
She received 12 pints of blood.
“I will never forget the day when we saw her in the emergency department.” Andrew said. “You couldn’t even see Grace, there were so many consultants and trauma surgeons working on her. We were told that the following 24 hours were going to be massive. That 24 hours passed, and it went to 48, then 72.
Grace, who was just 12 years old when she was involved in the accident, has undergone spinal surgery and has metal plates “holding her together”.
Her spinal cord was severed and she had a fracture where the skull joins her spine. She had a three-inch blood clot on her right-hand side, causing her to have six mini strokes.
“She is incredible, I am incredibly proud of her…”
Andrew said: “We have still got a hell of a long way to go. One of the strokes caused nerve damage to Grace’s right vocal cord and right diaphragm and she had 23 separate injuries under five different consultants.
“In the last month we have seem flickers of movement. At the moment Grace can’t talk, she has got a tracheotomy that helps with her ventilation.
“We don’t know whether she is going to be ventilated for the rest of her life. At the moment, she will be off ventilation for 14 hours.”
Grace’s eye sockets and right cheek were fractured, and she had seven ribs that were broken back and front, and also a broken nose.
Within the past two weeks, Grace has made significant progress as she has returned to schooling at King’s College Hospital School and also had her first shower in four months.
“She is incredible, I am incredibly proud of her,” added Andrew, a lifelong Charlton fan.
“I can’t thank James enough for what he has done for me…”
A few months after the accident, James set up a JustGiving page for Grace[4] which smashed its £100,000 target in just a few days.
Andrew said: “It’s all for Grace, for her rehab or buying a wheelchair.
“It’s very emotional when you read the messages we are receiving. I can’t thank James enough for what he has done for me.”
He added: “When Grace could mouth some words, she asked myself and my wife if people will still want to be her friend if she is in a wheelchair?
“After crying for a few minutes, I said ‘don’t be ridiculous’. What we do now is, we don’t show her the amount, we show her how many people have donated, at the moment it is close to 4,000 people.
“She has 4,000 new friends.”
References
- ^ Gravesend (www.kentonline.co.uk)
- ^ after her school bus collided with a tractor in Meopham in May (www.kentonline.co.uk)
- ^ school bus collided with a tractor (www.kentonline.co.uk)
- ^ set up a JustGiving page for Grace (www.kentonline.co.uk)