David has suffered from spina bifida since birth, and as a result has to use a wheelchair whenever he needs to go more than short distances. However, he has used his wheelchair to some considerable effect since taking up basketball over 10 years ago.
Not only is he one of the UK's most promising young players, he's also a member of the successful Knights team in Northern Ireland.
Besides being a world-class basketball player, David also combines his training and playing with a full-time job at the Department for Enterprise, Trade and Investment.
But dreams of representing Team GB at the 2012 Paralympics in London were dealt a major blow after a match in Birmingham. His playing chair was damaged beyond repair on the flight back to Belfast, and while he was able to continue to compete, by borrowing wheelchairs from other players, he desperately needed his own.
The airline responsible offered compensation, but it was not enough to cover the cost of a replacement. David therefore turned to the Fund for help.
We were able to provide a grant to help cover the outstanding costs of his basketball wheelchair. Furthermore, it turned out that his everyday wheelchair also needed to be replaced; we provided another grant to help cover the cost of that, too.
The first major test for David's new chair came at the 2007 European Championships in Turkey. As defending champions, Team GB were confident of another good run, and sailed through their group section with a 100% record.
Convincing victories over Germany, in the last 8, and the Netherlands, in the semi-finals, followed, before a meeting with Spain in the final.
However, this time, Spain proved the better team, and ran out 65-54 winners, leaving David to add a silver medal to the gold he picked up in Belgium 2 years ago.
However, David is hoping to move on to bigger and better things, including the possibility of playing for Great Britain at the 2010 Senior World Championships, to be held in Birmingham.
"I would just like to say a big thank you for my new chairs," he said. "They helped me very much."
