Help save another family this Christmas
Sally is a mother to three children with disabilities. Life with her eldest, Milo, has been fraught with trauma and heartbreak, but when her family came to Over The Wall Camp, a spark was lit within Milo.
Milo's story
Milo doesn’t trust easily and gets incredibly nervous and self-conscious. He usually only goes to places for the food and very rarely pushes himself out of his comfort zone.
From the very beginning, when Milo was born, I was worried about him. He was floppy and struggled to drink his milk, cried constantly at night and picking him up made it worse. When I compared holding my friends’ babies of the same age to holding Milo, I knew something wasn’t right. At the time, I was labelled an anxious first-time Mum.
We found out that he had a rare chromosome deletion when he was six. After all those years of searching for a diagnosis, it was both relief and heartbreak.
For a while after diagnosis, things were difficult, but we managed–until his school utterly let him down. Meetings, letters and pleas for support led nowhere. Over a couple of years, Milo went from being a happy, confident child to an angry, scared, and anxious child.
"Going on the zipline made me feel really proud"
Milo
Camper
Re-igniting the spark
We were broken as a family the very first evening we went to camp. Milo sat in a room full of people having fun and singing, his hood up and his eyes closed. I didn’t believe that anything would reach him.
The next afternoon, Steve and I were doing a parent group, and we knew Milo was upstairs in the same building. Suddenly, we heard laughter, looked at each other, and said, “Is that Milo?” It was! I don’t know if we’ll ever get the “real” Milo back, but the first spark I saw that he was still in there was at Over The Wall Camp.
"I couldn't believe there was such a charity that could be exactly what we needed—something that could save us"
Sally
Milo's Mum
A life-changing impact
Camp has been everything to Milo. We saw him blossom into a different person in front of our eyes. Camp has literally changed Milo’s life. Everybody at camp wants him to succeed – he’s never had that before, having been so let down previously.
At camp, Milo tried new things. He stepped out of his comfort zone because he felt truly supported for the first time. He even took on the zipline, a challenge that filled him with pride.
Camp is the happiest, safest, most wonderful place, full of love from the moment you arrive to the moment you leave. We’ll remember meeting other families in similar situations, being accepted for who we are, and finally, not being the odd ones out. This experience has been life-changing for my family. I couldn’t believe there was such a charity that could be exactly what we needed—something that could save us.
Your chance to bring hope
This Christmas, you can give families like Milo’s the gift of hope. Every donation helps provide transformative experiences at Over The Wall Camp—experiences that reignite joy, confidence, and connection in children who need them most.
For Milo, camp was a turning point. For Sally, it was a miracle. “We were broken as a family. Camp saved us.”
Your generosity can make that miracle happen again. Will you help save another family this Christmas?
