Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney donate £10k to ICU fundraiser

Wrexham AFC midfielder James Jones, from Winsford, and his partner Chloe are raising money for two intensive care units following the birth of their son Jude 15 weeks early.

Jude – who weighed 1lb 4oz – was taken to Bolton neonatal intensive care, while Ms Jones was treated at Wrexham Maelor intensive care.

The couple recently started a GoFundMe to raise money for the two ICUs and for Spoons, a charity which offers neonatal support for families.

On Friday (May 24), a £10,000 donation was made by the Wrexham AFC owners under the name ‘Rob and Ryan Wrexham’.

“We cannot thank the nurses, doctors and consultants enough for saving me and Jude,” Chloe wrote on their fundraising page.

“The work they do day in, day out, is amazing. There really are no words for how much it means to us, Jude is our whole world.”

Chloe and James Jones with son Jude (Image: GoFundMe)

Chloe was about to watch Wrexham kick-off against Aldershot Town on November 19, 2022, when she began to experience severe pain in her stomach.

She was rushed to hospital by James’ parents where she was diagnosed with pre-eclampsia, a condition which causes high blood pressure.

Meanwhile, James had just scored for Wrexham before being subbed off and rushed to hospital.

Following an emergency c-section, Jude – born at just 25 weeks and one day – was given a 40 per cent chance of survival.

Chloe’s pre-eclampsia then turned into HELLP syndrome, which led to her having two seizures and multiple organ failure following the delivery.

Having spent the first 122 days of his life in hospital, Jude is now 'absolutely thriving'.

His parents said: “He is smashing every milestone and is the happiest little boy!

“Despite his difficult start, he is dealing with everything incredibly well.

“Going through what we did still affects us regularly and probably always will, we both take great comfort knowing that Jude won’t remember the trauma he went through though.

“We are so proud of him for being so strong and brave through absolutely everything he’s had to endure. It is an honour to be his parents and we love every second of it.

“Someone was looking out for us on November 19, if we hadn’t gone to watch James play at Wrexham, we wouldn’t have been across the road from the hospital and we wouldn’t be alive today.”

Jude was born 15 weeks premature and weighed just 1lb 4oz (Image: GoFundMe)

To date, 183 donations have been made to James and Chloe’s GoFundMe, raising nearly £16,500.

To find out more, visit www.gofundme.com/f/qqbud-please-donate-to-help.