Kind shoppers rally round for little Tegan

Feb 21 2008 By Graham Fraser

THE PLIGHT of a little Lanarkshire girl has moved shop staff to raise charity cash.

Two-year-old Tegan McQueen looks like any other toddler.

But the brave little Burnbank girl suffers from a painful disease which restricts her breathing – and even prevents her from crying.

Tegan, who attends Westpark Nursery in Hamilton, suffers from the rare condition laryngeal papillomatosis.

Along with her parents Leona and Peter, she goes to Yorkhill Hospital every month for an operation to have small tumours removed from her larynx.

Laryngeal papillomatosis is a condition which can block the airway passage of a sufferer and cause difficulty with breathing.

Between 60 and 80 percent of cases occur in children, usually before they reach their third birthday.

But kind-hearted Hamilton shoppers and a very special gran have stepped in to help Tegan as she battles the disease.

Sandra McQueen has worked as a shop assistant with Bon Marche at the New Cross Shopping Centre for the past five years.

Her seven colleagues at the ladies clothing store chose the day surgical unit at Yorkhill Hospital as their charity.

A basket of cosmetic goods was put up for raffle at the front of the shop and shoppers raised £302 for the unit.

This week, Sandra said: “When Tegan was very young, we became worried when she couldn’t cry properly. When she was upset, she looked like she was crying, but there was no sound.

“When she started to talk, she would speak with a very husky whisper. The GP referred her to the hospital and she was diagnosed with the disease.

“There is no cure, but we are all hoping that Tegan grows out of it when she becomes a teenager or a young adult.

“It is sad when she is nearing an appointment as she stars to choke on her food.

“She has to go for operations every month, and some months are better than others. I just want to thank everybody at Bon Marche and our customers for raising the money for Tegan and for the Yorkhill unit.”

Tegan will go to Yorkhill Hospital today for her next operation.

Sandra and the rest of the Bon Marche staff members are now preparing for another fundraiser.