Graham lends a helping hand

Plumbers’ merchant Graham in Abingdon, local supplier of plumbing, heating and bathroom materials, has lent a helping hand to Abingdon’s Stroke Club member Dawn Belprez.

Thanks to the Abingdon branch of Graham and local support group Stroke Club, Belprez, who had a massive stroke that left her paralysed down her right side, will have a bath replacement system fitted. She was no longer able to take a single shower without her husband’s help. Graham Plumbers’ Merchant and its customer Heelas Heating & Renewables – an Abingdon-based plumbing and heating company – agreed to supply and install Dawn Belprez’s shower solution free of charge.

Belprez has been a member of Stroke Club since the beginning of 2013. An Oxfordshire stroke club for working-age stroke survivors, it is run by survivors Gary Gill and Brendan Kehoe who organised a local event on Good Friday 2013 in order to raise funds towards the installation of a low-level shower and auxiliary appliances in Belprez’s home.

Graham Branch Manager William Storey says: “We really felt for Dawn. The Abingdon branch is a specialist showroom for bathrooms with a variety of high-quality solutions to suit different needs. As such, we are pleased to have been able to help the Belprez family. Heelas, in turn, is the ideal partner for installing the system as they share Graham’s belief in social responsibility.”

The system, worth approximately £2,000, comprises of IDS shower walls, a Lakes walk-in shower enclosure, an Aqualisa shower and Roper Rhodes accessories, including grab bars and a shower seat.

Belprez’s husband, David, who has continuously cared for her for the past two years, confirms: “Dawn is over the moon. We have been waiting for this shower for so long. The new shower room will really give some independence back to my wife.”

Belprez, 42, is a mother of two and former teaching assistant of Stanford In The Vale Primary School. She suffered a massive stroke without prior indication shortly before her 40th birthday in April 2011. The stroke has left her with right-sided hemiplegia, foot drop, some memory loss and speech difficulties. However, she receives physiotherapy and speech therapy as part of her rehabilitation programme. She is currently undergoing a medical assessment of her fitness to drive, so she can possibly increase her mobility by driving a car again soon.