Brave Thomas home for Christmas

He's home for Christmas!
Kerrylee Glass with 5-month-old son Thomas Williams who is back home for Christmas after spending most of his life in hospitalKerrylee Glass with 5-month-old son Thomas Williams who is back home for Christmas after spending most of his life in hospital
Kerrylee Glass with 5-month-old son Thomas Williams who is back home for Christmas after spending most of his life in hospital

A courageous tot who fought back from the brink of death is back home just in time for his first ever visit from Santa Claus.

Little Thomas Williams was born with a rare heart condition called transposition of the great arteries, where the two main blood vessels leaving the heart are switched – meaning that blood flows to the lungs and picks up oxygen, but is then pumped back to the lungs instead of travelling around the body.

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He was rushed to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool for life-saving heart surgery just days after he was born on July 10. He later suffered a serious heart attack at his South Shore home, and was saved by dad Tom, 23, who performed CPR on the youngster while waiting for paramedics to arrive.

Now reunited with Tom, mum Kerrylee Glass and big sister Danielle, 10, at the family’s Henson Avenue home, Thomas is looking forward to his first Christmas Day.

Kerrylee, 26, said: “It was always our wish that he would be home for Christmas and he’s finally here. We’re so happy to have him home, even if it feels like we’ll never get any sleep again!”

Five-month-old Thomas was discharged from Alder Hey earlier this month after bouncing back from a chest infection that left him struggling to breathe.

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Kerrylee said: “He’s been up and down, and it’s all been a bit of a nightmare. He had a very traumatic time while he was recovering. It was very touch-and-go the whole time and we couldn’t get him off the oxygen at all.

“He only got off the oxygen about a week-and-a-half before he came home.

“Now he’s doing absolutely amazing. Everybody has been sending him presents. We were at Blackpool Vic the other day and the nurses gave him a little toy dog with lights on it, and people have been sending gifts in the post.

“Everyone has been so supportive.”

A fundraiser set up by the family in Thomas’ name to raise cash for the Ronald McDonald House Charities, which provides free accommodation to families with children in hospital, brought in £1,000. A second fundraising event for Alder Hey Children’s Hospital is also in the works, and is expected to take place at Viva Blackpool in March next year.

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Kerrylee said: “It’s great to have Thomas home but it’s still very tiring.

“He’s still on quite a bit of medication and he will need check-ups at the hospital his whole life.

“He’s just starting to learn new things and grow into his personality. He’s very cheeky and knows exactly what he wants. The nurses all love him and call him ‘flirty pants’ because he’s always smiling at them with his big brown eyes.

“I just feel overwhelmed. All the support we have had from everyone really helps with getting into the Christmas spirit. I can’t thank everyone enough for all their help.”

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