Bibic helped me find my feet, please help them get back on theirs

The quest is on to reach our £25,000 target to Help Bibic Bounce Back and one person supporting it all the way is a 24-year-old graduate whose life was transformed by the children's charity.

When Blake Williamson was a baby, doctors told his mum, Ann, he would never move unaided, or be able to follow a simple command.

But this summer Blake graduated from Sheffield Hallam University with an honours degree in education and disability policy studies and has recently embarked on a masters degree.

This remarkable achievement is due in part to the determination of Mrs Williamson, who battled with the local authorities, insisting that Blake be allowed to attend mainstream school alongside his peers. Unable to speak, hold a pen, or operate a computer, Blake nevertheless took all the usual exams by pointing at a QWERTY keyboard.

With the help of a personal assistant (PA), he enjoyed all the usual school activities, including trampolining and other physical pursuits.

Mrs Williamson brought Blake to Bibic at the age of three and the centre's multi-disciplinary team of therapists devised a programme of regular exercises designed to stimulate his mind and body. At home, Mrs Williamson organised a team of 80 volunteers in three-day shifts, seven days a week, every day of the year, except Christmas, to reinforce the Bibic approach and help Blake's progress.

After nine years of visits to Knowle Hall, Blake became part of the charity's extended family and he said he was grateful for all the help offered and access to facilities, such as the hydrotherapy pool.

"We – I mean my mum and I – needed Bibic for all those years when I was growing up as we were both a bit lost," he said.

"It gave us a focus and the camaraderie built with the volunteers goes on even today. It was very much a learning experience where I found my feet, literally and metaphorically."

A packed programme of festive fundraising will get under way on Saturday in aid of the appeal.

Bibic hopes a collection at the Tesco superstore in Street and a Christmas fair at Bridgwater Town Hall will help give the charity a fighting chance of repairing the vital sensory swimming pool that was destroyed in the mystery blaze.

Local charities have been invited to set out stalls between 10am and 3pm on Saturday at the town hall's festive extravaganza, organised by Bridgwater Methodist Church to give worthy causes a boost before Christmas.

And after this weekend's fundraisers, the Christmas cheer will continue with a carol concert, local-produce market, mulled wine, mince pies and even a visit from Santa at Bibic's Knowle Hall base on December 12, between 6.30pm and 8pm.

Please send a cheque or postal order to Bibic Appeal, Western Daily Press, Temple Way, Bristol, BS99 7HD, or follow the instructions on this website to Help Bibic Bounce Back.