Fundraiser launched to buy wheelchair for 'inspirational' South Yorkshire dad-to-be paralysed by rare spinal abscess

Brinsworth-born Jordan Buxton-Anderson, 24, who lives in Clay Cross, Derbyshire, has been in hospital since January 11 after a spinal abscess ruptured in his back.

He had been feeling back pain since Christmas Day, and went to hospital after pain killers were not helping him. The ‘excruciating’ pain was initially diagnosed as a slipped disc until an MRI scan showed the abscess.

The burst abscess left nursery worker Jordan, who also has aspergers and Type 1 Diabetes, paralysed from the waist down. It is expected that he will remain in hospital for months and will never walk again.

Now, with baby daughter Elsie due in this week, Jordan’s family are raising money to buy him a specialised wheelchair that will help ensure he can spend as much time with her and his wife Emily as possible.

They also want to raise awareness of spinal abscesses – a rare condition that the family knew nothing about before Jordan suffered with one.

Jordan’s mother Dawn Anderson, who set up the fundraiser, said: "Jordan has been absolutely amazing. He has blown us away and made us all so proud.

“Since we set up this fundraiser people who have donated said you could not wish to meet a nicer person. The kids at the nursery where he works love him.

"If this happened to anybody else he would be the one raising money. We just want to get him the best quality of life we can.

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"When you get a wheelchair they are measured to fit you, but they are quite heavy.

"We want to get Jordan a lightweight one. His baby is on the way and this will help the family who will also have to be dealing with a pushchair, and will help him have a better quality of life.”

Dawn said will also enable him to visit us more easily, as the lightweight chair can fold down and he can access houses that have not been adapted for wheelchairs.

Spinal abscesses affect only one in 20,000 people, and Jordan wants to encourage people to be more aware of them.

Dawn said: “When we heard it was an abscess we thought the doctors could just clean it out and he could come home.

"Jordan said he never realised he would be paralysed for life by it. So he says to people that if they have any back pain they need to get it checked out.”

During his time in hospital since January Jordan contracted Covid, from which he has now recovered.

Now the young family are working with Rotherham Council to try to get a house adapted for a wheelchair where they can live close to family in Brinsworth.

Dawn added: "He is a fighter and I’m so proud.

“We are doing all we can and he’s working hard but we just want to help him achieve the most from his new life and be able to do things with his daughter.

"Yes he will get a standard chair but he deserves so much more. I do not have words to describe how thankful I am to people who donate.”

Members of Rotherham-based band Sad Ken, which Jordan recently joined as a guitarist, said: “Jordan will not let his situation change his life, he is to be joining Sad Ken as planned and will be joining us on the recording of the EP and on stage.

"Jordan is a tremendous inspiration and we are very proud that he is joining our band and that he is our friend.”

You can donate to the fundraiser here.