Inspirational speech from AVM survivor gets standing ovation at The Comedy Store, London
On Tuesday 25 February 2025, The Children’s Trust ambassador Adam Hills hosted a Comedy Night for a packed-out audience at The Comedy Store in Leicester Square, London. It was 22-year-old Zac, however, who stole the limelight with an inspirational speech during the interval.
Zac was supported by The Children’s Trust in 2019 after a ruptured AVM caused a bleed on the brain that gave him a less than 1% chance of survival. After life-saving surgery and spending two months in a coma, he spent four months at The Children’s Trust’s specialist centre in Surrey, undergoing intensive rehabilitation and receiving 24-hour care.
Speaking of his time at The Children’s Trust, Zac says: “It was an amazing environment to start my journey from being virtually paralysed in a semi-conscious state to standing up out of my wheelchair and ringing the bell to signify the end of my stay.”
Zac continues: “The Children’s Trust is essential to fill in the gap between a life-saving operation at the NHS and being able to integrate back into society to live the best life you possibly can.”
Since leaving The Children’s Trust, Zac has gone on to pass his GSCE’s and T Level in engineering and now works in the field. He volunteers for The Children’s Trust, mentoring young people with brain injuries and speaking at fundraising events.
Read Zac’s story: thechildrenstrust.org.uk/zacs-story
