We are delighted to announce that 'Albi's Butterfly Ball', which took place on Friday 16th August at Coed y Mwstwr Hotel in Bridgend, has raised an incredible £42,000 for DEBRA.

This unforgettable evening was made possible by the tireless efforts of Erin Ward, mum to Albi, and her family. Albi was born with recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB) and celebrated his 1 year birthday yesterday (19th August).

When Albi first entered this world, the journey was daunting. His tiny little legs, red and raw hinted something wasn’t right, but with the support of specialists and DEBRA UK, we found relief and answers.

Find out more about Albi's journey

Guests enjoyed a sparkling drinks reception in the hotel grounds, a 3 course dinner with wine, live entertainment from Cor Meibion Male Choir and The After Party Band, as well as a raffle and auction with generously donated prizes.

The ball was also attended by DEBRA UK President Simon Weston CBE and Janet Hanson, an EB Clinical Nurse Specialist at Great Ormond Street Hospital, who both gave speeches on the night about what life is like for families living with EB and DEBRA UK's vision of a world where no one suffers with the pain of EB.

Firstly, we'd like to say a huge thank you to Erin and her family for organising this wonderful event and to all their friends and family are doing to fundraiser for DEBRA; including a team taking part in Cardiff Half Marathon on the 6th October and an epic challenge trekking the Great Rift Valley in Kenya, starting on the 26th October.

We'd also like to thank the event sponsors for supporting the night, Smart BodyShop Solutions group, Mirror Image Accident Repair Centre and MW Vehicle Services Ltd, and everyone else who attended and helped to raise funds for families living with EB.