Miracle baby inspires fundraiser | Canterbury News | Local News in Canterbury

The family of "wee miracle" Ollie van Lent are reaching out to help other children affected with motor disorders.

Ollie died in the arms of his parents Hayden and Raewyn on December 7, aged 2, after a battle with a rare chromosome disorder, which left him struggling to breathe, feed, gain weight and with several other developmental problems.

Ollie was one of only 12 people in the world born with the condition, which was so rare it has no name and is simply known by its medical explanation - a partial trisomy of chromosome 17p. The chance duplication meant Ollie had three copies of chromosome 17, rather than the usual two.

The van Lents have organised a family fun day on February 12 to raise funds to give back to Conductive Education Canterbury, "a special place" that had been instrumental in helping Ollie reach his full potential.

Ollie's grandmother Pauline Bishop came up with the idea to support the foundation, which aims to help children aged six months to primary school age with motor disorders.

Mr van Lent said: "The people at Conductive Education have done a lot for wee Ollie. We would like to make a difference for others because so many people had helped him."

Conductive Education helped Ollie to sit up, walk in a walker with assistance, interact with his peers and helped increase his movement range and strength.

Mr van Lent said since the funeral they had been taking each day as it came.

"We're doing okay, we've just got to keep on thinking about the positive things that Ollie brought to our lives and how he touched everyone else's. That's what keeps us going," he said.

For more details on the fundraiser go to http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/oliverkoby.

All proceeds will go towards Conductive Education Canterbury.

To buy tickets, email Hayden and Raewyn van Lent.