Sue Eves-Brown with her 15-month-old daughter, Emma.

Geoff Potter

UP until 36 weeks into her pregnancy, everything was going fine for Sue Eves-Brown and her unborn baby.

But then, without warning, it all began to unravel.

Sue's little girl started to go into distress in the womb and an emergency caesarean was performed.

By the time Emma came into the world, she had permanent and extensive brain damage caused by a blood clot in her umbilical cord.

“Usually when a child is born into the world everybody is joyous and celebrating - when a child has a problem it's not what you do,” the Doonan mother of two said.

“Your family and friends are not celebrating the birth of the child, they're talking about how long the baby might live.”

In the 14 months since Emma was born, she has had appointments with hearing specialists, eye specialists, speech therapists, occupational therapists, paediatricians, general practitioners, neurologists and neurosurgeons.

For Sue and her husband, Andy, the experience has been “emotionally draining”.

“There are lots of demands on the family unit,” Sue said.

“I'm not a typical mum, and we don't have a family unit because everything revolves a lot around Emma at the moment.”

And with the emotional stress comes the financial worry of caring with a child with special needs.

While Disability Services Queensland covers a portion of the family's expenses, there is still a significant shortfall.

Emma requires about $15,000 worth of equipment, including a special car seat and a special chair so she can sit up.

That is why family friends Lauralee and Lee Berrill have decided to step in and help Emma and her family.

The couple, who owns Abseil Noosa, will offer half-price abseiling on Mount Tinbeerwah on August 8-9.

The cost is $35 a person and Lauralee said the entire amount raised would be given to the Eves-Brown family to purchase essential equipment for Emma.

Lauralee said she would simply love to see Emma be able to sit up in a chair like other babies.

They hope to raise $1400 on the weekend and say they may continue to hold the half-price weekend about every six weeks to raise money for the Eves-Brown family.

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