THE mother of a teenager who lost his cancer fight aims to open a new “safe haven” for young patients in what would have been his 18th year.
Jak Trueman, from Mid-Calder, suffered from rare blood condition T-Cell Lymphoma before his death in 2015.
Today marks what would have been his 18th birthday and mum Allison Barr has launched a crowdfunder to open a Jak’s Den support centre for young people with cancer in Livingston.
Allison, founder of the Team Jak Foundation, opened a smaller facility in the town two years ago, but now aims to expand to meet demand. It is hoped that the new facility in Ochil House would be open as early as the spring, if the £180,000 total is met.
Allison said: “We are absolutely over the moon as a family and charity to be announcing our exciting next steps on what would’ve been Jak’s 18th birthday. It has taken a huge amount of work to get to this point, and the search has been on for bigger premises since March this year when we started to outgrow our current Den.
“When we opened Jak’s Den we didn’t expect it to take off so quickly.
“At the moment we are working with approximately 64 families directly through Jak’s Den and serving many others through Edinburgh and Glasgow Children’s hospitals by providing snacks, goodies, diagnosis and sibling sacks, vouchers and music therapy.
“We have already raised almost half of the required £300,000 we need to fund this ambitious project but need to ensure we have enough revenue to keep it running.”
As well as flexible indoor spaces for music and play therapies, media zones and a soft play, the new Jak’s Den will offer a garden with spa therapy and a remote control car track.
The charity aims to open two further Dens in Fife and Aberdeen as soon as funds and premises are available.
To donate, visit mydonate.bt.com/events/jaksden180000.
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