A father is planning to jump out of a plane without a parachute to help to fund a cure for the muscle-wasting disease that threatens to prevent his two-year-old son ever reaching his 20s.
Marc Clark, 38, of Dickens Heath, near Solihull, will make the terrifying leap in Morocco — but with two professional skydivers leaping out seconds later and grabbing him in mid-air, in a scene reminiscent of the famous stunt in the film Point Break. It will be his first skydive — with or without a parachute.
His son, Jack, suffers from duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). There is no cure for the musclewasting disease that affects only boys. Sufferers have a life expectancy of about 18 years.
He said: “DMD is a cruel disease that has no cure. Every single muscle in my best mate’s little body is wasting away daily.” He is planning to do the jump next year and hopes to raise £1 million for research.
He said: “I am ex-forces but have never jumped out of plane as I am scared of heights. I’m doing this to raise awareness. But I have to do something to help Jack and other children with DMD.” The IT contractor and wife Anna, 36, have both been raising money in the hope of finding a cure.
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The couple first discovered something was wrong with Jack when he kept falling over. A blood test confirmed he had muscular dystrophy but not which type. While they awaited tests, the couple carried out their own research. “We looked it up and saw that duchenne was one of the worst. We hoped and prayed it wasn’t that one. But they eventually confirmed that it was.”
On current statistics Jack may need walking aids in 12 months, then need a wheelchair from between eight and 12, until his last muscle, the heart, fails.
The family will be fundraising at the Pavillions Sporting Club, in Kingshurst, from 10am today.