“I was first diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia at 15 back in 2015, undergoing treatment until 2019. Unfortunately, in 2021 the leukaemia returned, when as well as having chemotherapy, I underwent a stem cell transplant in January 2022. This was the most difficult part of my treatment spending 5 weeks in hospital but fortunately after spending 6 months recovering I returned to work as a plumbing and heating engineer. My immune system is still low and I’m susceptible to infection but am doing very well.

Whilst in hospital my social worker asked if I’d thought about a wish….charities like The Dream Factory give people like me something to look forward to, spending so much time in hospital it was nice to have a trip to Port Lympne, to focus on and we’ve finally just managed to make my wish come true!

Port Lympne was just amazing – We stayed in the Lion Lodge, which as the name suggests was literally next door to the lion enclosure…just a sheet of glass separating our lounge and bedroom from the huge, majestic beasts. Imagine waking up in the night and coming face to face with a lion just 6 feet away! The Lodge was awesome with its own private garden. It really was the trip of a lifetime, and I got to feed the tigers and took a safari through the park seeing zebras and giraffes and many more animals….we even had our own golf buggy to get around the park.
I like to express my thanks to everyone at The Dream Factory and Port Lympne Safari Park….you really made my dreams come true!.”