04
Nov
Fundraiser set up for Harrogate football coach left partially paralysed
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A fundraiser has been set up for a Harrogate woman who has been left partially paralysed.
Jules Hodson, 47, manager of Harrogate Railway AFC ladies’ team, underwent spinal surgery for an existing condition in June.
But her spinal cord was damaged during surgery and she was subsequently hospitalised for almost four months.
After recently being discharged, Jules is now unable to walk without help and is confined to the ground floor of her home due to partial paralysis.
Her friends, Paige Swales and Anna Sealby, have set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for private physiotherapy and rehabilitation over the next year.
Paige told the Stray Ferret Jules has always been a giver, from coaching grassroots football to working as an NHS nurse.
It is time to give back to Jules, Paige said, adding:
Basically, lots of people will be doing different things to not only raise money for the rehabilitation, but also to provide relief for the family.
Throughout November, I will be completing 10,000 steps a day as a starting point. I encourage anyone to get involved for however long. It's to raise money and also to improve mental wellbeing, as Jules was a very active person before all of this.
Just at the start of the year, we walked from Bridlington to Robin Hoods Bay over two days with Jules and the Harrogate Railway Ladies' team.
Jules and the Harrogate Railway AFC ladies.
Jules now requires assistance from carers and district nurses multiple times a day. They take care of her medical needs and help her with once-mundane tasks, such as food preparation and cooking, as she is unable to walk to her kitchen.
Paige added:
As you can imagine, life is currently full of challenges.
In her role as a children's nurse – most recently in public health for children in care and safeguarding – she was the one doing the caring. But it is her who needs to be looked after at the moment.
Paige, who is also hoping to arrange a football fun day as a way of raising money, told the Stray Ferret:
This ordeal hasn't stopped Jules from getting to her beloved Harrogate Railway to shout orders from the sidelines, or to have a beer.
Hopefully that, and life in general, can be made a little easier with our efforts here.
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