March is Brain Injury awareness month and to mark this, on Monday Luke Parry (a Lab assistant with us) delivered an assembly to the Senior School students. The presentation served to raise awareness of brain injuries and highlight the work being undertaken by the charity Silver Lining.
Luke shared with us all his own incredible story. He is a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) survivor and a very valued member of our school community. Luke’s journey is one which exemplifies courage, strength, perseverance, and hope. Luke was a first-class engineering student at Oxford University and a great sportsperson, he was so academically able that he was sponsored by a top engineering company. Luke’s life changed forever after a tragic fall from a second-floor balcony. After weeks in a coma Luke was flown home. He was told he would never walk or talk again, but due to his great determination Luke has proved everyone wrong. Luke’s identical twin brother (Ellis) worked with Luke and they developed an award-winning app, ‘Neumind’. The app was primarily designed to help TBI survivors with organisational skills but proves useful for anyone.
One year ago, Luke started working with our school. He has been a brilliant colleague, helping our own award-winning Science Technician, Emilia Angelilo both in the Prep room and in her STEM clubs. Luke is a great example of resilience and determination and serves as an inspiration to our students. Luke tells us that Sancton Wood has become an important part of his rehabilitation journey. We know that our school community has learnt so much from Luke that we owe him a debt of gratitude. We really are like a family and are glad that Luke is now part of that.
The week ended with a fundraising initiative and students held a bake sale in support of Silverlining, a charity dedicated to helping people with brain injuries. The whole school was involved, either baking, donating or eating. A representative from Silver Lining was present at our close of the week assembly to thank the students for their support. More details about the charity can be found by clicking here:
