​A promising young snooker player has been given a grant by the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation.

Fifteen-year-old Aimee Benn, of Burley-in-Wharfedale, began playing thanks to a free ten-week course in the game which was being offered in Menston by the Paul Hunter Foundation. Paul won the Masters Championship three times before losing his battle with cancer in 2006, when he was posthumously awarded the Personality of the Year title at the Yorkshire Young Achievers Awards.

Aimee took to the sport immediately and three years on is playing in tournaments across the UK and abroad, as well as helping younger members of her club with their coaching, and is now ranked ninth in the world after just two seasons competing in the ladies’ open age tour.
She recently took part in the Ladies Festival of Snooker in Leeds, improving on her last performance, and in August is hoping to be able to travel to Germany for the Paul Hunter Classic.

She received her grant towards coaching, registration and entry fees from Foundation Vice-chairman Richard Stroud who said: “It is always exciting to meet a young person with the determination and commitment to do well in whatever field they choose and we wish Aimee the best of luck for the future.”
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The main fundraiser for the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation is the annual Yorkshire Young Achievers Awards, sponsored by McCormicks Solicitors of Harrogate. Anyone who would like to apply for a grant can find full details at www.yorkshireyoungachievers.co.uk.

Foundation Vice Chairman, Richard Stroud, visited the Buttershaw Business and Enterprise College in Bradford last week to present a grant from the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation.
 
The Foundation are sponsoring Emma Graham as a teacher for 2 years. Emma is teaching a Year 10 class in the 1300 pupil secondary school. During his visit Richard attended a very creative and successful maths lesson. The Foundation would like to wish Emma every success in her role.

A young athlete from Cononley near Skipton has received a grant for coaching from the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation.

Jessica Mayho, 23, competes internationally in the women’s hammer and is aiming to qualify for the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

She has gained support from the Leeds Rhinos Foundation, L1 Performance, Sutcliffe Construction, Bottega Hairdressing, Mac G Racing and Westfield Health to fund her training but still has a shortfall in funds and the grant from the Foundation will go towards covering her annual coaching costs.

Foundation Vice Chairman Richard Stroud said: “Jessica is dedicated to her sport and also supports her local community. She has made an impressive effort to secure sponsorship already and we are delighted to be able to help. We look forward to hearing about her continued success.”
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The main fundraiser for the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation is the annual Yorkshire Young Achievers Awards which this year take place on Thursday 23 November, marking their 25th anniversary.

A Wakefield youngster has a new trike to help improve her mobility, thanks to the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation.  Nine-year-old Leah Ann Bowie, of Kettlethorpe, was born with Cytomegalovirus (CMV). Her mobility is poor, causing her to fall frequently, and she is deaf and wears two cochlear implants. Her learning is delayed and she has no speech and problems with swallowing.

Her mum, Elaine, contacted the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation for a grant towards a specialised Tomcat Fizz trike for Leah Ann, the family having already raised £250 towards it. The new trike arrived this month and will enable Leah Ann to get about independently, without fear of falling or having to use a wheelchair.  Elaine said: “Leah Ann is delighted with it – it makes her life easier and more fun!”

The Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation distributes funds raised by the annual Yorkshire Young Achievers Awards, sponsored by McCormicks Solicitors.  The Foundation was formed in 2010 to support young people in the region to achieve their potential and makes grants to individuals and projects. Vice-chairman Richard Stroud said: “It is tremendous how something which seems so simple can make such a difference to a young person’s life.”

​Two special dogs are helping two Yorkshire youngsters to tackle the challenges in their lives, thanks to grants from the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation.

Ten-year-old Logan Robinson, of Pollington near Goole, and six-year-old Cohen Hadfield of Rotherham both have autism and have both been given grants towards Support Dogs which will help with their day-to-day lives.

The Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation distributes funds raised by the annual Yorkshire Young Achievers Awards, sponsored by McCormicks Solicitors.

The Foundation was formed in 2010 to support young people in the region to achieve their potential and makes grants to individuals and projects. Vice-chairman Richard Stroud said: “We were impressed by the efforts both families have made to raise money for the Support Dogs and by how much difference having a support dog could make to their lives.”

Both boys have been matched up with dogs by the Sheffield-based Support Dogs charity to help them to deal with difficult situations and to stay safe. Logan’s brown Labrador, Rollo, will join the family next month, while Cohen has a Golden Retriever/Labrador cross, Azerley, who is already making a huge difference to the family.

As well as autism, Logan has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, developmental delay and severe anxiety disorder, as well as other health issues. Due to his disabilities, he has no sensory comprehension, a lack of danger awareness and finds social situations extremely hard to manage.

His family has been fund-raising for their new dog, with dad Tony completing the Three Peaks, and they hope to be able to involve Logan in future fund-raising efforts, together with his dog, Rollo. Logan has already met Rollo and the family are working with Support Dogs on training before Rollo arrives in October.

Logan’s mum, Amanda, said Logan and the whole family were very excited about Rollo’s imminent arrival and she felt that the dog would make a big difference to their lives, keeping Logan safe from dangers that he does not perceive.

Cohen Hadfield also has developmental delay, along with hearing impairment and complex epilepsy. He, too, has no sense of danger and will run on to roads to avoid social situations. At the moment he has to sit in a special needs pushchair for his safety when he is outdoors but the family has already made some short shopping trips with Azerley and have found a huge difference in Cohen who has remained calm and walked with the dog. His mum, Sarah, said: “Being able to see Cohen do that is just fantastic! He would have run into the road but instead he just walked with Azerley and stayed on the pavement.”

She hopes having Azerley means that the family will be able to do things as a whole family, for example going to the park, which has not been possible before.

​​A young disabled sportsman has upgraded his wheelchair, thanks to a grant from the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation.

Joshua Gardner, 18, plays wheelchair basketball and rugby and needed a stronger, lighter and more reliable chair to progress.
Josh, who lives in Halton, Leeds, has seen great success in both sports, and heads to the Wheelchair Rugby Four Nations Cup next weekend (13 & 14 September) as first reserve.

He plays for the Leeds Rhinos WRL team, scoring around 20 points last season, and was also part of the Irish World Cup rugby team last year.

His Four Nations role comes hot on the heels as player/coach for England North at basketball in the UK School Games, where he helped the team win Silver last weekend.

He said: “My new chair is brilliant and arrived at the right time as I played in the National Basketball Championships just after it came. I wish I had had it in time for the Four Nations trials as it has also helped a lot with my rugby!”

Josh had little interest in sport as an able-bodied youngster but at the age of nine he contracted transverse myelitis, a neurological disorder caused by inflammation of the spinal cord, and began to use a wheelchair. His interest in sport grew, as did his success, and he hopes to make even greater progress with his new chair, aiming at making the team for the European Rugby Championships next year.
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Away from sport, Josh has just begun an apprenticeship as a Broadcast Assistant with BBC Radio Leeds.