CAMERON SPROTT felt his heart sink as the class watched the short film detailing the adventure pursuits they could expect at an activity centre in England. As the only one in his primary five class at Lasswade Primary not going on the trip, the nine-year-old's sadness grew at almost the same rate as the excitement of his fellow pupils.
Cameron's parents were afraid to send him on the trip because the delicate youngster suffers from renal failure and is awaiting an urgent kidney transplant.
His deteriorating kidney function is down to just 20 per cent and his mum Elaine is undergoing tests to be his donor.
But just as Cameron was still reeling from missing the school trip, a generous benefactor gave the Sprotts good news. Scots charity Dreamz4U, which fulfils the wishes of sick children, has arranged a weekend at Legoland in Windsor for the youngster, his parents and a friend.
Elaine, 45, says: "It's brilliant news, he will love it. Lego is what he's really into. Cameron was so upset when he had to sit through the video, but this trip to Legoland will cheer him up so much."
Cameron was born with a horse shoe kidney, meaning his two kidneys were fused together. "When he was one he had to have his stomach cut open from one end to the other, and had a catheter bag on each side for two months, to sort the drainage," explains Elaine, who runs a newsagents with her husband Ian, 53.
"His kidney function has got worse over the years and he gets very tired and can be sick. He's cut back on things he likes, such as chocolate and cheese, because the kidney can't get rid of certain foods and they go back into the system, creating a poison which makes him quite ill."
Cameron, who has a younger sister Kaitlin, seven, has to go to the Royal Hospital for Sick Children every two to four weeks for checks on his ailing kidney.
His immune system is weak and he also has to avoid caffeine, after problems with a racing heartbeat. Indeed, after being confined to taking caffeine-free juice for so long, Cameron has already planned his first act after his kidney transplant. "The first thing he'll ask for will be Coca-Cola," says Elaine.
The charity responsible for giving Cameron a much-appreciated boost, Dreamz4U, was set up by Jim Michie, 45, whose daughter Kelly, 11, was treated for a brain tumour at the Sick Kids' Hospital.
Jim is a well-known figure in Scottish rugby circles, where he earned the nickname Jim the Pig, which he attributes to his dirty play, though he adds: "I was only sent off once in 31 years so I can't have been that dirty."
He lived in Edinburgh for ten years, when he played for Preston Lodge RFC. But he began spending lengthy periods in the Sick Kids' Hospital while Kelly, who has now recovered, was ill. The suffering he saw prompted him to raise money for children and he founded Dreamz4U last April.
Since then the dad-of-two has made 112 dreams come true for children throughout Scotland, from limousine rides to meeting Robbie Williams. "I want to give every single kid who has been unwell the chance to fulfil their dream," says Jim. "They will have that buzz for the rest of their lives."
Jim, who manages the charity by day after his night shifts for Network Rail, pays for wishes by organising fundraising events.
Elaine's daughter-in-law, Lynn, contacted Jim to suggest a treat for Cameron, who will be the first child the charity has helped in Edinburgh. "The people of Edinburgh are great and I think they will embrace this with both hands," says the genial charity founder. "The more people who get involved, the more kids will get their dreams."
Cameron is taking his friend, fellow Lego enthusiast Michael McFadzean, seven, to Legoland. Michael, also from Bonnyrigg, is no stranger to hospital himself, having been born with a heart defect for which he had a major operation when he was just eight days old.
Since then he's had regular check-ups and was back in hospital when his appendix burst last year. His mum Marie, 39, says: "He'll be absolutely over the moon. This charity is fantastic. It makes such a difference to sick children to know they have something to look forward to."
As for Cameron, his mum broke the news of the trip to him today and he's already making plans. "It's cool," he says enthusiastically. "I like building Lego up. I'm going to go to Legoland and build a ship."
PIGGING OUT ON BIRTHDAY WISHESCHARITY Dreamz4U celebrates its first birthday on April 18 and to mark the occasion, founder Jim Michie, nicknamed Jim the Pig, is launching Pig Snout Day.
In a twist on Red Nose Day, schoolchildren all over Scotland will be given pigs' snouts to wear and sell to raise money to make sick children's wishes come true.
The campaign was launched last month at Murrayfield Stadium where Jim met the Scotland rugby squad and persuaded them to don the PVC snouts. Dreams Jim has organised include sending a child to a McFly concert, organising for another to meet singer Rihanna, and getting two kids to meet footballer Ronaldinho and the Barcelona FC team.
Any school interested in taking part in Pig Snout Day or anyone who would like to get involved in Dreamz4U or nominate a child who has battled illness, should contact Jim via his web site:
www.dreamz4U.org or call him on: 07815-022 421.
