A PEMBROKE family is trying to raise £10,000 to help a 35-year-old dad-of-three, confined to a wheelchair since he was 21, with a better quality of life and help him enjoy life with his sports-mad children.

Gerallt ‘Ger’ Williams, of Grove Way, Pembroke has Friedrich Ataxia, a debilitating condition.

Wife Kelly, helped by friend Julie Bowers is hoping to raise the £10,000 through the Justgiving website to provide ‘Ger’ with an all-terrain motorised scooter and a hand cycle to help him go wherever his family goes, and an iPad to help him organise his life independently and communicate easily with family members in North Wales.

To date, nearly £1,200 has been raised.

The family currently live in a property that is not adapted to their needs so daily life is a struggle for the family while they await an adapted property.

Kelly said: “The all-terrain scooter would enable Gerallt to reach places that his normal wheelchair does not. Both Owen and Lowis play rugby for the Quins and cricket for Pembroke Dock, and, if the weather is bad, he is not able to go as the wheelchair will get stuck as the ground is too soft.

“We live so close to the beach but yet this is one place where we can't go as a family. All kids love to swim and he misses out on his with the kids as his wheelchair is not able to cope with sand. Gravel also can cause problems so places like Manor House are a no-go for us.

“A hand cycle is for many reasons; phyiso work would help maintain the use he has in his arms. Fresh air will do him the world of good and just being out with me and his kids on a family bike ride would be amazing for him as well as us. At the end of the day Gerallt just wants to be a dad and husband just like any other man and these items will help him do his. We will all benefit from the greatly.”

Along with the online donations, a series of fundraising events are also planned.

The first fundraiser, taking place this Saturday evening, August 13, sees barber Lynn Lewsley of Pembroke Dock’s The Barber Shop bravely having her locks shaved with ‘Ger’ at Pembroke’s Castle Inn.

The event takes place at 8pm.