A truly dynamic duo

SUMMER Finlay races down the street giggling happily like any other 12-year-old, her little brother chasing after her.

Minutes before, she proudly declared her motto in life: You can achieve anything you set your mind to.

A big statement for a child. Especially a child with spina bifida, scoliosis and hydrocephalus. A child paralysed from the waist down.

But, not for Summer. She lives by her motto, sets her mind to something and does it. 

Just Summer – and her wheelchair. A truly dynamic duo.

Her optimism is infectious as she hurtles the length of the street in her powered chair outside the family home in East Sussex.

Summer, surrounded by her beloved Stitch toys, said: “I just want to be my unique self. I don’t want to be the same as other people. I want to be different.”

Summer and her chair are a force to be reckoned with. She does disability acrobatic gymnastics, dancing, she’s a skatepark regular – even starring in a dance chair production at London’s O2. 

Oh, and she’s a singer, too – and something of an inspirational social media presence.

Her ambitions: to write and perform her own songs and be the first disability acrobatic gymnast in the Paralympics.

She certainly has the drive (and the medals to prove it) - and her chair is that link to the bright future she’s aiming for.

Her current model was provided by Whizz Kidz, a charity whose vision is ‘a society in which every young wheelchair user is mobile, enabled and included’.

The organisation is supported by People’s Postcode Lottery players who have, so far, raised £5m.

Summer’s dad and full-time carer Shaun, 35, talks candidly about the challenges Summer and their family continue to meet head-on. But they are devoted to each other and riff like a seasoned double act. 

Shaun said: “We found out about Summer’s disabilities on the 20-week scan during the pregnancy. We went in there hoping to get the gender and they told us that there was some abnormality with the spine and the brain. 

“They asked us there and then if we’d like to continue with the pregnancy. It is a difficult question to be asked, so we asked, ‘will the baby live a happy and fulfilled life?’ They said obviously there would be some challenges, impairments and things, but there was no reason why they shouldn’t live a happy life. It was a question that was easy to answer. Now we’ve got this little mischief, haven’t we?”

Summer: “I’m not always a mischief.”

Shaun laughed: “Oh, alright then.”

The dad-of-two - who also has two stepsons - added: “We just go through life with different challenges. And, because of that, we have become closer as a family.”

But nothing phases them.

Shaun and wife Anne-Marie know that Whizz Kidz are key to giving children like Summer that all-import sense of freedom and independence.

Shaun said: “Organisations like Whizz Kidz are priceless. For families like us with children with extra needs, there is no price you can put on them. They are invaluable.

“Having a chair that fits your needs - lightweight, easy to manoeuvre - has given her the independence to be able to believe that she can do the gymnastics and the skating and not rely on other people helping her to move around. A basic skill we take for granted.”

Summer’s current chair has a clip-on motor which she can turn on to help her get up hills – or add a little oomph if she’s late for class.

Shaun said: “We needed something that was small and discreet that was always there because you never know when you’re going to need it, but without it being in the way.

“She went for an assessment with Whizz Kidz in March last year.

“We were looking at different options where she has strong upper body strength. She didn’t really want an electric wheelchair because she would lose that power, that strength, that independence on that side. We found what she’s got now, the smart drive. We asked Whizz Kidz if they could help and they said yes.”

Summer: “The power helps me to get up hills and stuff. I use it at school sometimes between lessons. I use the power to give me a bit more boost to get round the building when no one is in the way.”

As she matures, she needs a new one – but is waiting until after major surgery to have rods inserted to straighten her spine.

Summer said: “I want the operation done. I have some anxiety, but more excitement. The biggest difference to day-to-day life is that I won’t have to wear a brace anymore. It’s annoying when it gets hot.”

There’s no stopping this particular whiz kid, with her sights set on a future Paralympics if they can get enough people to start competing in disability acrobatic gymnastics.

Shaun said: “There aren’t enough people in the world even to have a competition. Summer loved the idea of it, and it goes well with her history of dance, but we couldn’t find any wheelchair users doing this sport. There was nothing.

“We started putting videos out there of her doing this and some of them have hit quite big. We have had a lot of people reach out and say that their child who is a fulltime wheelchair user has wanted to start taking up the sport after watching the videos. 

“Then there’s the other side of things where even able-bodied people have turned round and said that her videos have helped inspire them. She’s inspiring a lot of people.”

Summer: “I’m hoping to be the first person to do it, if we can get more people into it.”

Jo Barr, of Whizz Kidz, said: “Summer is a doing a great job of showcasing her sport for other young wheelchair users and it is great to hear how the right wheelchair has made a real difference for her.”

She added: “Whizz Kidz is very grateful to Postcode Lottery players for all the financial support they have given the charity. As the UK’s leading charity supporting young wheelchair users up to 25 years old, we provide them with the equipment and skills they need to live life as independently as possible and to enjoy all of the opportunities and activities that so many others take for granted ‐ at home, at school, at work and beyond."