'I was badly injured in a car crash 10 years ago when I was 4. Now I'm a champion fundraiser'
A remarkable Wearside teenager will run 10 miles for charity later this week - to mark a decade since he was badly injured and scarred in a car accident.
Charlie Graver, now 14, was only four years old when he suffered broken cheek bones, a broken nose and lost a lot of skin from his nose and forehead after the accident in 2015.
He fought back from horrific injuries
The heroic youngster needed emergency surgery and surgeons used a skin graft from his thigh for his nose. He had more operations in May 2023.
But incredible Charlie has fought back and his mum Kimberley told the Sunderland Echo: “He has been doing running challenges since the age of 8 to raise money for Changing Faces, a charity that has supported us over the years after his car accident. On September 30 it will be 10 years since the accident and Charlie plans to run 10 miles to acknowledge this.”
‘In true Charlie Graver style, he plans to turn it into something positive’
The teenager from Chester-le-Street set a fundraising target of £1,000 and had already reached 97 per cent of the total by Friday last week.
Kimberley added: “The anniversary of the accident is always difficult for us to look back on but in true Charlie Graver style he plans to turn it into something positive by taking on a fundraising running challenge to raise awareness and vital funds.”
In 2020, he completed the equivalent of two marathons by running every day in June to chip away at the distance.
Changing Faces is the UK's leading charity for everyone who has a mark, scar or condition that makes them look different.
Charlie won the Fundraiser of the Year and Child of Achievement trophies at the 2021 Sunderland Echo-run Best of Wearside Awards.
In 2024, Charlie won further honours. He collected the Points of Light Award and also received a personal letter from the former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak who said: “I know that during your recovery you were supported by Changing Faces, and I was inspired to hear how you have been undertaking fundraising challenges to help the charity continue their important work.
“It is a remarkable person who, when faced with hardship, finds the strength to help others – but this is exactly what you have done.”
Now you can support him in his latest venture by visiting https://www.justgiving.com/page/kimberley-graver-7