Band of Builders, a building charity, has completed an extension to the home of a Woodbridge family to help get their 21-year-old son home – more than three years after he suffered a catastrophic brain aneurysm which left him requiring round-the-clock care at a specialist neurological care centre in Ipswich.
At the handover, Luke Goold-Hannatt visited his family home for the first time since the extension was completed by volunteers from Band of Builders. More than 70 tradespeople from across the UK answered the call to build the extension in just four weeks so that there’s room for a ground-floor bedroom and wetroom and also a bedroom for a specialist live-in carer.
Luke told the gathered crowd: “I just want to say thank you so much to every single person who helped to build me my new home – and how happy I am that I will be back with my family again. I’ve missed them all so much. You’re all amazing and I’ll never forget what you’ve done for me.”
Now that the extension is completed, specialist equipment will be installed in the next few weeks – after which Luke can finally go home by September: reuniting the family under one roof again for the first time in more than three years.
Trainee bricklayer Luke was just 17 years old when he suffered an aneurysm known as an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) in January 2020. Mum Karen said his chances of survival were not good as he underwent life-saving surgery at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge to release the pressure to his brain.
As well as thanking all the volunteers and businesses that supported the project, Band of Builders Operations Director Tony Steel also praised local businesses and the local community for its support in keeping the volunteer workforce supplied with food and drinks during the project.
“Our corporate sponsors have been amazing in supporting Luke’s project by generously donating time and materials – which we simply couldn’t have done without,” he said. “We are also grateful that the local community came out in force to support the project to get Luke home, and the generosity of all those businesses that supplied food to keep our volunteers fed was incredible.” www.bandofbuilders.org
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