Elissa and Sophia’s Story
We caught up with Elissa, who applied for a workplace charity grant and fulfilled an adventurous challenge whilst raising money for CLAPA.
Elissa, who works for FatFace, brought CLAPA to the attention of the FatFace Foundation and secured an incredible £750 to help fund our vital services.
She told us, “we were planning to climb Everest Base Camp as a family as it’s always been a ‘goal’ to mark a big birthday.
As FatFace was offering grants, I applied, and it got through. We were already doing the climb (I did not want to do sponsorship), and all I had to do was send in a justification for why they should donate to CLAPA and how [the charity] had helped my daughter as she was born with a cleft palate.”
Elissa told us a little bit more about her memorable trip:
“Trekking to Everest Base Camp over 15 days in December 2022 was a challenge in itself; temperatures at night plummeted to -15 degrees.
Everest Base Camp is at 17,598ft / 5,362m. It was a tough slog to get there, but with the right mindset, the right kit, and having taken time to acclimatise we made it on day 11. We were completely elated when we finally reached Base Camp.
I wanted to say a big thank you to FatFace for supporting me on my journey and donating £750.00 to CLAPA, a cleft charity. They helped us hugely when my daughter was born with a cleft palate and underwent multiple operations and speech therapy.
My daughter, now aged 15, joined us on our trek to Base Camp, which was a massive achievement for her.”
I can now do anything I want to without my speech impacting my opportunities in life. I couldn’t have done this without the support of CLAPA.
Elissa’s daughter Sophia explained to us why the trip meant so much to her:
“We chose CLAPA because I was born with a cleft palate. CLAPA supported my parents and me throughout many operations and speech therapy.
I can now do anything I want to without my speech impacting my opportunities in life. I couldn’t have done this without the support of CLAPA.
I want to share the message that if you have a cleft palate, don’t let your speech stop you from doing what you want in life. I learned that your speech will become fluent if you keep practising.”
Thank you, Elissa and Family and FatFace, for your kind donation.
The Cleft Lip and Palate Association (CLAPA) is the only national charity supporting people affected by cleft lip and palate in the United Kingdom.
We receive no government or NHS funding; our work is only possible thanks to people like you stepping up to fundraise and volunteer.
By getting involved with fundraising or volunteering, you’ll be helping to ensure we can support families like yours for years to come.
