Charity launch is spot on for Tim

Buy photos » Tim Craythorne is launching the WishAble charity to help grant wishes to physically disabled youngsters. Picture by Marcus Mingins. 0712019MMR.

A DISABLED man who achieved his childhood dream of scoring a penalty past England legend David Seaman, is starting a new charity to make the wishes of other disabled youngsters come true.

Tim Craythorne is setting-up WishAble after going through the trauma of becoming disabled at the age of 12 when he was diagnosed with Perthes Disease which means he now relies on a wheelchair and occasionally crutches to get around.

Three years later a charity granted Mr Craythorne's boyhood dream of scoring a penalty past former Arsenal shot-stopper Seaman, by arranging for him to take a spot-kick against him at the City of Manchester Stadium in 2003. The charity has since folded, prompting the 23-year-old's desire to fill the void.

The Astwood Bank resident said to achieve his dream had helped him immensely and now he wanted to do the same for other young people faced with the same situation he was.

"When you have a life changing experience like becoming disabled it is a bit of a shock and you can find it difficult to cope and I want to prove others something good can come out of it because I know having my wish granted really helped me," he said.

"There are charities which grant wishes for children with terminal illnesses but when I looked around I couldn't find anything which did the same thing for physically disabled children.

"It will initially be based around sports, music and entertainment - either meeting someone famous or visiting somewhere - rather than granting holidays or anything like that but that is something we can look into long-term as we get more funding."

The charity will initially help children in the Midlands and fund-raising events will be held to support the granting of wishes. Opera singer Alfie Boe has already agreed to become patron of the charity.

In order to progress the charity, Mr Craythorne needs £5,000 to register it officially and is appealing for donations to help meet the target as well as businesses and individuals who would be willing to help grant potential future wishes.

Email wishablefoundation@gmail.com to get involved or the charity can be found at @wishablecharity on Twitter.