Armless boy again feted by London police

Press, 12 August 1978, Page 3

Armless boy again feted by London police

NZPA London In a further gesture of good will towards Stephen Roome, the young Christchurch boy bom without arms, the City of London Police have held a reception in his honour, presented him with a collection of police badges, and have given a cheque to his mother, Mrs Joyce Roome. The Commissioner of Police for the City of London, Commissionei Peter Marshall, made the presentation on behalf of all the London policemen and women who gave to the fund, started by Constable John Sherlock, an old friend of tht Roome family. Last week Mrs Roome and Stephen attended Roehampton Hospital limb centre in London where they met two other people born without arms — an 18-year-olu girl and a 16-year-old boy. They also spoke to occupational therapists and specialists. Mrs Roome said the meetings were valuable. “We got a lot of new ideas and also great encouragement from seeing how independent they were,” she said. One very simple but valuable item Stephen will bring back to New Zealand with him is a dressing stick — a long expandable metal slick with hooked ends that Stephen has learned to handle with his feet and teeth and dress himself completely. “My husband and I spent ages trying to think

of a way Stephen could do things like putting on a jersey by himself but we were unable to come up with anything that made him completely independent,” she said. “But after the demonstration at Roehampton Stephen quickly mastered the art and now dresses himself every day.” Several bus-drivers and conductors from London transport also attended the police reception. Like the police they were concerned II-year-old Stephen’s plight and collected more than $2150 to help meet his expenses during his stay in London. They will bold a raffle next week and hope to raise about $9OO more for Stephen. Stephen has been taken on many sightseeing excursions by both the busmen and the police, including visits to the Tower of London, Windsor Castle and the Royal tournament. Mrs Roome said she continued to be “quite overwhelmed” by the generosity Londoners had shown Stephen. The boy and his mother will go to New York at the end of this month to visit an American minister, who, like Stephen, was bom without arms. He is now middle-aged and married, with four sons. Mrs Roome has met him several times and finds his advice and assistance very helpful. They will return to London before leaving for New Zealand in the middle of September.