Charity ball will help sick Rugby boy

A charity ball is taking place at the Masonic Hall in Rugby on Saturday to raise money for Albie Lopeman, 2, who has Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis.

At the beginning of 2017, just as he was beginning to find his feet and his voice, Albie’s family began to notice changes in him and his behaviour.

In just a short space of time he changed dramatically from an ordinary, outgoing, inquisitive toddler, to a little boy who barely moved or spoke.

The condition is caused when the body produces too many of a specific type of white blood cells - those cells can then build up in certain parts of the body and produce tumours and damage to organs.

Amy Riddell, who is helping to organise the ball, said: “Over the next 12 months we are hoping to raise as much money as we can to help support LCH sufferers and their families, specifically supporting the charity Histio UK.

“This small organisation does a stellar job in supporting those affected by LCH and they also support medical staff by helping to provide a better understanding of this little known disease. Albie’s been undergoing treatment for nearly six months now and is thankfully on the road to recovery.

“But not all sufferers are as lucky - more money means more research, more understanding and more support for all those affected and it would mean so much to us if we could be a part of making that happen.”

Amy said there’s still a few tickets left for the ball, which features Rugby band The Record Covers.

For more information contact ‭07713 184275.

Amy added: “We’ve also had some great raffle prizes donated from local businesses, Little Shadows Childcare have donated a Amazon kindle, we’ve had a PS4, lots of beauty vouchers and more!”