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Readers hit fundraising target

From the archive, first published Saturday 11th Mar 2006.

A mother has offered a "thousand thanks" to Oxfordshire people who have helped smash a £15,000 target to pay for her daughter's life-changing operation.

News of the success of the appeal to help Gulhsat Kadyrova came yesterday (March 10) when more cheques arrived at the Oxford Mail -- including one for £1,000.

Speaking at Oxford's Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, where Gulshat is recovering after undergoing surgery on Tuesday, the six-year-old's mother Bahar said: "I can't say thank you enough. A thousand times is not enough.

"I'm so grateful to everyone who has helped make my hopes come true."

Miss Kadyrova gasped when she heard that Maurice and Margaret Dodwell, of Aylesbury, sent in a £1,000 cheque to help her daughter, who was born without any hip sockets.

The couple were spurred to donate after seeing Gulshat's photograph in the Oxford Mail.

Mr Dodwell said: "We wish her every success and hope that the operation gives her a great future. The picture in the Oxford Mail was a pleasure and she deserves a great future."

Cheques totalling almost £2,000 have arrived at the Oxford Mail in the past two days, adding to about £7,000 pledged to Gulshat's Fund since she and her mother arrived from their home country, Turkmenistan, in Central Asia, seven weeks ago.

Miss Kadyrova, 31, who earns about £40 per month, sold nearly all her household possessions to raise money for Gulshat's treatment and managed to collect £6,000 towards the NOC's £15,000 fee for the operation.

With donations, that target has now been exceeded and translator Amy Schondelmeyer said Oxford Mail readers played a major role.

She said: "We've been shocked by the generosity. We want people to know that they have really helped Gulshat. She'll be in a wheelchair for four to five weeks, but should then be able to put weight on her feet and start walking."

The operation, which involved surgeons creating hip sockets for Gulshat's leg bones to slot into, will enable her to walk properly and run for the first time.

Gulshat, who has been learning English during her stay in Oxford, said she was looking forward to playing sports for the first time, in particular football.

Miss Schondelmeyer said she was extremely brave and, despite some pain, had not stopped smiling.

Asked for a message to Oxford Mail readers, Gulshat simply said: "Thank you".

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