Born with Incorrectly Grown Skull, Dad shares his son’s survival testimony. The Unexpected Gift: How One Knock Transformed Our Lives
James Fitzakerly was asleep in his car, feeling at his lowest, when a knock on the window turned everything around. In the dead of night, he thought someone was about to rob him. But what happened next, he describes as “like winning the lottery.”
His son, Gibson, had been born with craniosynostosis, a rare condition that causes a baby’s skull to grow incorrectly, leaving their head shaped like a triangle. As Gibson’s condition threatened his ability to balance and speak, he needed urgent surgery. But the surgery came with a price – and not just financially.
At the time, James was a rising celebrity hairdresser, but he had just opened his own business and wasn’t eligible for any financial assistance. So, he slept in his car outside the hospital, staying close to his son, who was in intensive care.
One night, as Gibson lay recovering from his skull surgery in the hospital, James was wrapped in a blanket, trying to sleep in the cold car park. Around midnight, there was a knock on his window. He recalls, “I thought I was going to get robbed. Instead, it was someone from Ronald McDonald House Charities UK. They gave us a bed, a room, access to washing facilities, and food in the cupboards. It was the hug I needed at that moment.”
Ronald McDonald House Charities UK operates 14 houses across England, Wales, and Scotland, offering families a “home away from home” near their children in the hospital. The charity’s accommodation helps families stay close while they deal with the stress of their child’s health, providing a place to sleep, cook, and find some normalcy when everything else feels uncertain.
James continued, “That first night in a real bed, in a warm room, with other families who understood what we were going through – it was like winning the lottery. In intensive care, you’re surrounded by children fighting for their lives. Ronald McDonald House became our safe haven, a place where we could breathe and process everything happening to our son.”
The journey wasn’t easy. James, a proud Sunderland native, recently suffered a devastating knee injury when his patella tendon snapped during training. But after having signed papers acknowledging that Gibson might not survive his nine-hour operation, physical pain seemed insignificant.
He said, “Even if I had to crawl across that finish line, I’d do it. I went into that hospital as a boy, thinking I just wanted to be a rich and famous hairdresser. I came out a man, realizing what truly matters in life.”
In the years since, James has faced challenge after challenge to raise money for Ronald McDonald House Charities. He fought his first (and only) boxing match, ran marathons without training, and completed four grueling sporting events in just four consecutive weeks. Now, with Gibson old enough to join the cause, their participation in the Great North Run this year marks a full-circle moment.
“This year is the first time he’s old enough to be in the Great North Run. He’s totally up for it and excited to take part in an adult event. Even with my injury, we’re doing this together,” James said.
He added, “I went from sleeping in my car to finding my purpose. It wasn’t just about having somewhere to sleep or wash – it was about realizing there are good people in the world, people who’ll reach out to help a stranger in their darkest moment. How do you repay something like that? You spend the rest of your life trying.”
Now, Gibson is healthy and strong, watching his dad face challenge after challenge for the charity that once gave them shelter. Together, they’re determined to cross that finish line, no matter what it takes.
