Eighteen inspirational dads strip for charity calendar to raise funds for a children’s hospice in Wales – and share their heartbreaking stories
They posed in aid of a care centre that gives support when a child is diagnosed with a life-limiting condition
MATTHEW BARBOUR
EIGHTEEN dads have bared all in a charity calendar to raise money for a children’s hospice.
They posed in aid of Ty Hafan, a care centre in Wales that provides support when a child is diagnosed with a life-limiting condition.
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These dads decided to bare all in bid to support Ty Hafan, a children's hospice in Wales
This week, Mr June, Mr April and Mr October tell Matthew Barbour why they stripped – and we round up some of the other pin-ups.
Alun Williams, 42 - Construction Manager
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Alun Williams got involved in the calendar as a way to give back to Ty Hafan, who helped him when his daughter passed away
Construction manager Alun Williams, 42, of St Athan, South Wales, lives with hairdresser wife Victoria, 37, and their kids Rhydian, 12, Yvie, nine, and Oisin, five.
They lost 16-month-old daughter Elis in March 2010.
Alun says: "From the moment she was born we were told Elis was very poorly.
"Doctors at Heath Hospital in Cardiff eventually told us she had Charge syndrome, a very rare congenital condition.
"Elis was in and out of hospital for endless major operations, but toward the end we were told about Ty Hafan, which became a lifeline for us."
"We could leave our poorly girl in their amazing care and spend quality time together as a family.
"For siblings there were games rooms and loads of social events where we all found lifelong friends. "When Elis passed away it was unbelievably sad. Without Ty Hafan I don’t know if we could have moved on.
"It was Victoria who signed me up for the calendar. It was only later she told me I had to pose naked.
So one Saturday in July, there I stood stark naked on the beach .
"We had a right giggle doing it and, as well as raising money, it encouraged all us dads to share our feelings."
Huw Liddell, 28 - Electrical Engineer
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Huw Liddell (left) and Adrian Watkins (right) both stripped bare in aid of the children's hospice
Electrical engineer Huw Liddell, 28, lives with partner Anna in Barry, Wales.
Their only son Osian, aged one, has received support from the charity after being diagnosed with a rare degenerative autoimmune condition called Aicardi-Goutieres Syndrome (AGS).
Huw says:
"We didn’t know anything was wrong with Osian until a couple of hours after he was born. He had a rash and couldn’t stop shaking.
"It wasn’t until four months later we got the diagnosis – only 400 people in the world have ever been diagnosed with AGS and 40 per cent don’t survive past early childhood."
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Huw says Ty Hafan has made his family able to cope
"His body attacks its own cells, which happened in utero, meaning he was born with significant brain damage.
"Osian suffers regular seizures and respiratory infections. He can’t hold his head up and we’ve been told he won’t ever be able to talk.
"We couldn’t have coped without Ty Hafan – at the worst point we got only a few hours’ sleep a night, owing to his medicine and feeding schedule.
"When you have been through what families like ours have, the last thing you care about is someone seeing you naked."
Lee Morgan's family were referred to Ty Hafan when their son Ezra was diagnosed with SMA Type 1, a rare muscular condition
Bricklayer Lee Morgan, 28, lives in Bridgend, South Wales, with wife Lucy, 27, a sales administrator and daughter Bailey, three, together below.
Their son Ezra died of a genetic condition last year when he was seven weeks old.
Lee says:
"A month after Ezra was born, in February 2015, we took him to our GP with breathing problems. He was then rushed to hospital.
"Doctors told us Ezra had a condition called SMA Type 1 – basically a missing gene severely affecting his muscular development."
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Lee, pictured with wife Lucy, daughter Bailey and son Ezra
"There was nothing they could do to help him and we had to prepare ourselves to say goodbye.
"One of the doctors asked if we’d like to go to the hospice to spend our last few hours with him there. "The staff at Ty Hafan immediately took us under their wings.
"Saying goodbye to your child isn’t something I’d wish on my worst enemy but the level of support and love we were shown that day was staggering.
"Since then, Lucy and I have given everything we can back to Ty Hafan.
"The idea of me being naked on loads of families’ kitchen walls next June just makes me laugh. The shoot itself was really great fun."
Fellow pin-ups:
JANUARY: Brad Watson, 38. Son Archie died aged three.
FEBRUARY: Marc Woodward, 34. Son Rhys, 13, has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.
MARCH: Jason Morris, 37. Son Alfi died aged two.
MAY: Andrew Davies, 46. Son Jordan, 23, has epilepsy.
JULY: Jeff Griffiths, 48. Daughter Melanie died aged 16.
AUGUST: Ben Jones, 42. Daughter Hallie Mae, five, has a, genetic disorder.
SEPTEMBER: Greg Murdoch, 32. Son Louis died aged three.
NOVEMBER: David Lewis, 49. Daughter Sophie, 17, is one of only 50 people in the UK to be diagnosed with CDKL5, a rare genetic condition that means she is unable to walk or talk.
DECEMBER: Matthew Smith, 40. Son Lewis, aged seven, who has Tuberous Sclerosis, a rare condition that causes non-cancerous tumours to develop all over his body.
These dads aren't the only people who have dared to bare all for charity.
