Joe’s Story
When Joseph Kendrick entered the world, doctors told his family he would live for just ten days.
Joe entered life with Non Ketotic Hyperglycinemia (NKH), an extremely rare, life limiting genetic condition that affects the brain and causes dangerously high levels of glycine.
From his very first breath, Joe showed everyone what he was made of.
He fought.
And he keeps fighting.
Today, Joe is a teenager. He lives with severe disabilities, experiences seizures, and needs full time care, yet he inspires everyone he meets with his strength, resilience, and unmistakable spark.
His smile, his stubbornness, and his determination have shaped everything Joseph’s Goal has become.
The Charity Born from One Little Boy
In 2012, Joe’s parents, Paul and Emma, set up Joseph’s Goal with one mission: to fund research into NKH and give children like Joe a better chance at life.
There was very little research happening anywhere in the world so there were no dedicated UK organisations supporting families.
There were almost no specialists studying NKH at all.
Joe’s family, backed by friends, volunteers, and the Wigan community, decided to change that.
What started as a small, kitchen-table idea has grown into the UK’s only NKH charity, and the world’s biggest fundraiser for NKH research today.
Defying the Odds Every Day
Joe has faced more medical challenges than most people experience in a lifetime.
Yet he continues to surpass every expectation placed on him as a newborn.
He has met Premier League managers, switched on the Wigan Christmas lights, appeared on national television, and connected with thousands of people who follow his journey and support the charity in his name.
Joe drives breakthroughs in NKH research today.
A Story of Hope
More than £1.25 million has been raised for NKH research thanks to Joe’s journey.
His story has helped drive pioneering work in gene therapy, mRNA treatments and new medical approaches that simply did not exist a decade ago.
It has also given families affected by NKH in the UK and around the world somewhere to turn.
His impact is profound, far reaching and ongoing.
NKH is so rare that without families like the Kendricks, and without charities like Joseph’s Goal, research would continue to be drastically underfunded. Joe’s life has already helped change the future of NKH research.
But the fight is not over.
Every event, every fundraiser and every donation moves us closer to better treatments and, one day, a cure.