Les & Jenni Vince
Les Vince with his wife Jenni at Buckingham Palace after collecting his MBE.
8 years ago, along with his wife Jenni, Les Vince started raising money for the Marfan Trust. To-date they have raised an incredible £40,000 by holding tombolas and raffles in their home town of Grimsby.
In 1978 Les was diagnosed with Marfan Syndrome. When he was born in 1952, Marfan syndrome had hardly been heard of. Up until the age of 13, Les was of fairly normal height and then suddenly he shot up from 5 ft to 6ft 6ins in 2 years. He carried on growing more slowly until he reached his present height of 6ft 10 ins. He was the youngest of four boys. Sadly his mother died suddenly of a massive heart attack when she was 59 years old and his eldest brother, also died suddenly at the age of 43. It was then that the fatal connection with Marfan Syndrome was established.
Despite undergoing 41 operations, as a result of his worsening condition, this has not deterred him from his fundraising work and even though he is now less mobile, he is determined to carry on raising money for the Marfan Trust for as long as his health permits him to do so.