Hi there,
We are the Vollans family. We wanted to share our reasons and invite you to join us.
We started our journey to becoming parents later in life. After two miscarriages and complications in pregnancy, we were overjoyed to welcome Joseph on 13 March 2014. After an emergency caesarean and a few scary days in NICU, we finally came home, hoping the hardest part was behind us.
Six weeks later, everything changed. Joseph wouldn’t settle, went limp, and spiked a high temperature. Mother’s instinct told me something was very wrong. We drove straight to A&E at Royal Derby Hospital. The next nine days were the most traumatic of our lives. Joseph was diagnosed with meningitis and treated with intravenous antibiotics. Thanks to the incredible paediatric team and getting help quickly, he pulled through.
During that time, a family member found Group B Strep Support (GBSS). Their team answered our calls and emails and helped us through the darkest moments. Later, we learned how common carrying group B Strep is and how a simple test and timely antibiotics can protect newborn babies from serious infection.
That’s why we still support GBSS today. This March, our whole family is taking on 100 Squats a Day to raise awareness and funds so other families get the information and support they need, when they need it.
Thank you for reading our story.
From
Janice, Julian and Joseph
