Two prosthetic legs which are on their way to Africa are returning to a country they are familiar with. After Andrew Groves died his wife, Kathy, donated two of his prosthetic legs to Legs4Africa but both of these legs have been in Africa before. Andrew Groves had been a trustee and chairman of a local charity that helped families in the Gambia so he and Kathy, travelled there many times. They made good friends among the Gambians and Kathynstill keeps in touch with them.
Kathy says that Andrew was a lovely man who never let his disability make a difference to what he did. As a boy he cycled everywhere until one day his chain broke, and he fell off his bike. A large tanker behind him couldn’t stop and ran over his right leg, which had to be amputated through the knee.
When she first met him as a science researcher in St Georges Hospital London, Kathy didn’t realise immediately he had a prosthetic leg as he was so good at walking with it. They enjoyed long walks and climbing hills in the Lake District and across Europe together and Kathy has lots of memories of Andrew’s leg breaking at difficult moments and of Andrew hopping along to catch a train or taxi!
Now his prosthetic legs will be back in Africa, helping people living with limb difference to get on with their lives.
