A Page-turning Fundraiser: 700 Books in 30 Days.
Chelsea Savage, 25, and her son Leo, 20-months, will be taking on The 700 Challenge for The Cleft Lip and Palate Association (CLAPA) this June.
CLAPA launched The 700 Challenge to raise awareness of the one in 700 babies born with a cleft every year in the United Kingdom. Asking their supporters to pledge to do 700 of an activity they choose over the month of June.
Little Leo and Chelsea have set themselves the challenge of turning the pages of 700 books over the month (that’s 23 a day!)
Chelsea said, “We’ve chosen to start with our huge collection of ‘That’s Not My’ books. Then we are going to move onto the Peter Rabbit collection.”
“It’s [Leo’s] first anniversary for his lip repair so we will be getting some new books for him to celebrate.” She continued.
“It’s [Leo’s] first anniversary for his lip repair so we will be getting some new books for him to celebrate.” She continued.
“We hope that by doing this challenge with our son Leo we can raise vital funds for a charity we hold very close to our hearts!”
Leo was diagnosed with a cleft lip and palate in 2022 at Chelsea’s routine 20-week scan. “When the sonographer told us something was wrong with our baby, fear and panic set in instantly. We couldn’t wrap our heads around the devastating news we had been given. We knew nothing about cleft lip and palate and it wasn’t something either of us had in our family history.”
But it wasn’t long until Chelsea was introduced to CLAPA. The charity offer support to parents and their families from diagnosis through to adulthood.
Chelsea said, “Following on from our scan we soon met our lovely cleft nurse who told us all about the charity. Over the last 20 months, CLAPA has given our family guidance and support from the day our son arrived!”
Many babies born with a cleft can experience difficulty feeding. This can cause stress and worries for new parents and carers, CLAPA can be there to offer support and guidance.
Chelsea said, “We received a pack with bottles that had a special valve in to allow him to feed from a bottle. As well as lots of very useful leaflets explaining everything we needed to know.”
“We also received a storybook that helped explain Leo’s condition to younger members of our family.”
“CLAPA runs a social media page where me and my family have received overwhelming support from families like my own. We really couldn’t be anymore grateful for everything they’ve done for us.”
“CLAPA runs a social media page where me and my family have received overwhelming support from families like my own. We really couldn’t be anymore grateful for everything they’ve done for us.”
CLAPA’s Facebook group offers the chance for parents and carers all over the UK to share photos, advice and stories of support for one another.
“Getting the news that something is wrong with your unborn child is heartbreaking and can leave you feeling alone. However, the Cleft Lip & Palate Association was a huge support network for myself, my partner and our family. We have met so many wonderful families who are on the same journey as us.”
The 700 Challenge
You can do what you want, when you want, with whoever you want—how you participate is completely up to you!
You can take part as a team and split the challenge between you. Or go solo and take on a personal challenge!
Choose any activity you would like, and do 700 of them within the 30 days of June. That’s around 24 lots of each activity every day.
If you want to take part in The 700 Challenge, sign up today.
