Liversedge Boy With Cerebral Palsy Raises More Than £10,000 For Epilepsy Society By Walking 2.6km

A youngster from Liversedge with cerebral palsy has raised more than £10,000 for the Epilepsy Society after walking 2.6km.

Zach Eagling successfully completed 130 laps of his garden as part of the 2.6 Challenge, a nationwide fundraising event held this year in place of the London Marathon.  He began on May 10 and finished on Tuesday, his ninth birthday.

Zach was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when he was three. His condition means he has difficulties with his mobility and cognitive development. 

Since his diagnosis, specialist lawyers at Irwin Mitchell have helped him and his family access specialist therapies and support he requires.  He has only recently started walking independently without the use of his frame.

Expert Opinion

“Zach is a little superstar. He has shown such determination to complete this challenge, even though walking can be a struggle for him.

To raise more than £10,000 for charity is fantastic, and I have no doubt that the Epilepsy Society will be thrilled with the much-needed financial boost at this challenging time.

Zach is a great inspiration of how disability shouldn’t be a barrier to people achieving their goals.”
Rachelle Mahapatra - Partner

With the income of many charities hit hard due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the 2.6 Challenge was launched to encourage people to continue fund-raising despite many events being cancelled.

Zach’s activity was inspired by Captain Tom Moore who recently raised more than £33million for the NHS, also by walking laps of his garden. 

Zach chose to donate the money raised to the Epilepsy Society as he lives with the condition and wishes to raise awareness.

His mum Claire Keer, 38, said: “We are all so proud of Zach.  The amount of money he has raised has gone above and beyond what we ever thought possible. 

“When Zach first began his challenge, we set the target at around £260 as we knew many people were struggling financially, but he surpassed that in a matter of hours. 

“The donations continued to roll in, and the total is now at a staggering £11,253 with some still to come in.  The response has been absolutely incredible.

“We are so grateful to everyone who has supported Zach and donated money.”