Brad plans fundraising skydive to help find cure for so far incurable motor neurone disease
A 28 year old man who was diagnosed with a so far incurable brain and nerve disease will be skydiving later this year to do his bit to find a cure.
Brad Wale, from Bridgnorth, had years of testing before receiving the devastating diagnosis that he has Motor Neurone Disease, which gradually gets worse over time although there are treatments to help reduce the impact.
"My one wish is for them to find a cure or a decent treatment to ease symptoms and prolong life," said Brad. "This is the reason I am doing a sponsored skydive, to raise much needed funds to get that one step closer."
Brad is also a big believer in positivity and activity to help with promoting good mental health and not letting anything stopping you from achieving your goals and dreams.
Brad intends to split the money from his September 29 skydive between the Motor Neurone Disease Association and a Shropshire charity, the The Cavalier Centre in Much Wenlock. A part of the Riding for the Disabled Association, Brad said it has been instrumental for him.
Brad said: "This place has given me the encouragement and hope I needed to keep going no matter what life throws at you. These are both amazing charities for different reasons but are both equally important."
He also does cake sales and tombolas each week to try and spread more awareness and more funds for the two amazing charities.
Brad now lives with his family due to his condition worsening, although he says "I’m still trying to fight this and stay as independent as possible.
"We used to live in Wordsley, Stourbridge but moved here into a bigger house to cater for my needs."
He is no longer able to walk up stairs but used to work a lot of hours in bars and restaurants as a waiter in around Stourbridge and most recently in Oswestry. He was a manager at the Royal Oak in the north Shropshire town.
Before that he lived in Spain for four years but came back to England at the first sign of symptoms.
Although he had to give up work he dedicated his time to raising awareness and fundraising. He's already raised £2,000 with offline amounts too. But he has his heart set on raising so much more, including awareness of the disease that Professor Stephen Hawking had.
Brad's fundraising website is hosted on the Give As You Live page here: https://donate.giveasyoulive.com/fundraising/brads-sponsored-skydive-1