A WILLITON family whose two seriously-ill children have spent much of the year in hospital were special guests when over 50 youngsters met Santa and his elves at Watchet’s Bell Inn on Saturday.
‘Story and Snacks with Santa’ raised over £800 for Watchet-based charity Elliot’s Touch, founded by Donna and Paul Stevens in memory of their 13-month-old son.
Elliot died of mitochondrial disease and childhood cardiomyopathy in 2015 and the charity raises funds towards research into the condition.
Saturday’s Christmas event included story-telling, a gift from Santa for each child and yule logs and hot chocolate donated by Glenmore Bakery and Watchet Co-Op.
Santa had a special chat with Gemma and Andy Griffiths and their children Sarah-Jane, Tyler and Cady, who had been invited by the organisers to join in the fun.
“It had been kept as a surprise for the children but we wanted to give a Christmas treat to a family which is going through a really hard time,” said Donna.
“Hopefully, it helped them forget for a little while what an awful year they have had.”
Sarah-Jane, nine, and Tyler, seven, both have a rare condition which affects the body’s immune system. Sarah-Jane is waiting for a bone marrow transplant and chemotherapy and Tyler is currently having gene therapy.