Five-year-old Xavier Wynn alongside his mother Karla Williams and grandmother Kerry Connolly are back for a second round of Trivia with a Twist.
Mrs Connolly said the event aimed to provide a fun environment for people to gather with friends and, more importantly, raise funds and awareness for the medical condition neurofibromatosis.
“Last year we raised $4800, so we’re hoping to beat that this year with special trivia guests from Ballarat hosting the night,” she said.
NF is a debilitating inherited condition that causes tumours to form on the nerve cells in the body.
Ms Williams said Xavier’s condition had progressed, and he now was required to wear a Boston brace 23 hours a day.
“Our last appointment showed he was stable, which is good news, and the brace is doing its job,” she said.
“We’ve been told Xavier will need spinal surgery, but at the moment he’s too young and doctors want to delay for as long as possible.”
Covered in dinosaur print, Ms Williams said Xavier was still the happy kid everybody knew and loved, although he'd had a difficult time adapting to wearing the brace.
“The first month was a very emotional one — particularly for Xavier. There was lots of crying, not wanting to wear it, and he pleaded with me not to put it on him, so that was really tough,” she said.
“But he’s now he’s back to his old self and loves showing everyone his dinosaurs.”
The Trivia night will be held at Sherbourne Terrace, 109 Wyndham St, Shepparton, on September 20 at 6.30pm.
Tickets are $45 including dinner.
For more information or to book, phone Kerry Connolly on 0439 711 157 or Allan Connolly on 0409 316 176.