A COUPLE have launched a £10,000 fundraising campaign to help their autistic son get the best start in life. Joanne Gray and Gary Dean say five-year-old Sam was left with severe learning difficulties and unable to speak after the MMR jab they blame for his condition. Sam's Appeal will pay for an ABA (Applied Behaviour Analysis) programme which will help him to lead as normal a life as possible. 'Simple tasks that you and I take for granted, such as washing, getting dressed, using the toilet and eating, are just some of the problems Sam faces every day,' said Joanne, of Hoole Lane, Chester. 'He also has difficulty understanding the dangers in the world around him. 'We are hoping to raise enough money to start a home-based programme to teach Sam using the ABA science. This means employing therapists to work with Sam every day and providing specialist equipment and materials.' Joanne and Gary, who also have a 20-month-old son, Louis, are appealing for support in their mission. They kick-started the appeal last month with a charity disco to raise money to cover the cost of setting up a legitimate Trust Fund. Family and friends attended the event at the Home Guard Club in the city's Canal Street and about £200 was raised from collections and raffles. Paper Trail in Hoole donated Mickey Mouse balloons to decorate the hall and prizes were donated by Village Bistro, Hoole, which gave a meal for two; Flowers by Gaynor, Boughton Heath, which gave a bouquet of flowers; and Specsavers, which gave a £100 voucher. More fundraising events are in the pipeline. The couple's brother-in-law Brendan McLaughlin is organising a sponsored parachute jump; Sam's aunt Lisa Dean will run the Chester Half Marathon and Joanne's father Des Gray is planning a darts marathon at his local pub, The Lock Vaults. Joanne and Gary are confident the programme will work, particularly if they are able to start it while Sam, a pupil of Dee Banks Special School, is still small. The couple firmly believe it was the MMR jab which brought on Sam's autism and say that, prior to this, he had shown signs of being a bright and intelligent child. Joanne said: 'He was starting to speak and was very sociable. But after he had the jab he developed a rash and became very unwell and his progress stopped, then started to slide backwards. 'Like most autistic children, he gets upset when his routine is changed or when other children are around. This used to be particularly hard for Louis, he used to get upset when Sam wouldn't talk to him or play with him, but now he is used to it.' She added: 'We think that with ABA things could dramatically improve for Sam. It will teach him the skills he needs to be happy with other people. 'We hope that one day he will be able to go to a mainstream school and he will have the best chances in life he can get.' If you would like to make a donation to or organise a fundraising event in aid of Sam's Appeal, you can call 01244 321571 or e-mail btjs@aol.com. | 
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