Kaylee's Florida wish comes true

BRAVE Kaylee Huddart Tugby has enjoyed a trip of a lifetime.

Kaylee, who suffers from an extremely rare muscle wasting disease called myopathy, visited Florida in December.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation, which grants wishes for children suffering life-threatening illnesses, funded the holiday, which included visits to Disneyland, Sea World, Universal Studios, Magic Kingdom and Epcot.

And five-year-old Kaylee, who attends St Anne's School, had a fantastic time.

She said: 'I loved watching the killer whales at Sea World and watching Cinderella in a show at Magic Kingdom.'

Though Kaylee, of Braye Harbour, had a wonderful time, the trip wasn't without stresses and strains. She was due to set off on 30 November but endured five days at Gatwick Airport due to heavy snow.

Mum Wendy Tugby said Make-A-Wish helped the family every step of the way.

'The charity was fantastic. They changed all our flights so the holiday could still go ahead. They made our five days at Gatwick bearable - things would have been so difficult without their help.'

Wendy said Kaylee is writing a letter to Make-A-Wish to thank them for the holiday.

She went on to outline her daughter's condition.

'Kaylee is now on steroids for the foreseeable future. She takes a course for two weeks and then has a two-week break. The doctors want to see if they will make any difference to her muscles.

'A professor from America has been in contact and said that he wants to meet Kaylee. Unfortunately he was unable to meet us when we were in America but he is very keen to study Kaylee and her illness.'

Kaylee is one of only four known people in the world to suffer from myopathy, which is caused by the dysfunction of muscle fibre. She is the only known child to have the illness.

Islanders have raised thousands of pounds for Kaylee since her family appealed for help. It is hoped she will return to the United States in the near future to visit the professor in Philadelphia.

Further fund-raising events are planned to help her. Anyone who would like to make a donation in aid of Kaylee should email helpkaylee@hotmail.co.uk.

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A scheduled ferry service to France looks set to start in April.

Dielette-based Vedettes du Cotentin has approached the States with plans to offer crossings which give islanders the opportunity to take day trips or longer breaks on the Continent.

VC's Benjamin Bon said: 'The service should start in April and the timetable is already online.

'A day return ticket will cost £44; a single will cost £29. It is the same price for children and adults.

'Sailings will take 45 minutes when the sea state is smooth. We will ask people to be at the harbour 15 minutes before departure for boarding.'

VC is planning to offer a return sailing from Dielette on Sunday 10 April. A morning and evening departure from Alderney will be offered on Wednesday 13 April, while another Dielette return is planned for Friday 15 April. Sailings are also planned on four other dates in the month.

States chief executive Roy Burke said: 'I have written to Mr Bon giving the General Services Committee's broad support for the proposals and inviting him to meet with us to explore further. He has suggested a meeting in the next few weeks.'