A collection will be taken at our big Community Day game against London Skolars at the Vestacare Stadium on Sunday (3pm) for the parents of baby Jax, who is seriously ill in Manchester Children’s Hospital with an extremely rare condition.
Jax, the only person in the world to have a particular strain of Ipex, is the son of Jenni and Ali, who have both had to give up work as a direct result of their baby’s illness.
Jenni is a teacher at Lyndhurst Primary School, one of the many schools to have children and staff at Sunday’s game as part of Oldham RLFC’s support for The Oldham Pledge.
Jax was born with Ipex, a condition in which the immune system attacks its own body tissue and organs.
He is having chemotherapy in preparation for a bone marrow transplant and Jenni will stay with him in isolation for the next 12 weeks.
Ali has had to give up work to look after Jax’s two siblings with the result that, as well as learning to cope with these extremely worrying times, the parents are experiencing financial difficulties.
Pupils from Hathershaw College will be collecting near the turnstiles and we hope and trust people will donate generously to come to the aid of this young family who find themselves in this dreadful situation.
As you know, Sunday is a day for the whole family with the launch of Roary’s Pride, our new members’ club for under-16s, and the visit of around 150 young people, teachers and support staff from Hathershaw College and a dozen local primary schools as part of our support for The Oldham Pledge.
If you are bringing children to the game with the intention of supervising their membership of Roary’s Pride please arrive in plenty of time. There will be face painting for children and each child who joins the Pride at Sunday’s game will be entered in a draw to be player escorts at the home game against Hunslet on Good Friday.
Children will also be escorts and flag bearers this Sunday and The Oldham Pledge children will do a lap of honour at half-time.
It promises to be quite a day, but while we enjoy the game and share the experience with so many children let’s have special thoughts for Jenni and Ali, baby Jax and his two siblings and for all our visitors from Lyndhurst Primary.
